II  B  R 

OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY 
OF    ILLINOIS 

B 

C226 
cop. 2 


Illinois  Hist.  Surv 


A  RECORD 

OF  THE 

TESTIMONIAL  DINNER 

TO 

Honorable  3fc*?pt?  <S*  Cannon 

of  2Ulhtat& 

BY  HIS 

FRIENDS 


FEBRUARY    15,    1913 
WASHINGTON,  D.  C. 


PRESS  OF  W.  F.    ROBERTS  CO. 
WASHINGTON,  D.  C. 


'  2:lfe 

^M^Mre^A 
INDEX 


Foreword    7 

Guests    12 

Menu    15 

The  Chairman  17 

The    Toastmaster    25 

Mr.  Speaker  Clark  27 

Senator  Elihu  Root  33 

The  Seven  Ages  of  Cannon 39 

Pleasantries  from  the  Chair  41 

When  That  Midnight  Choo,  Choo,  Leaves  for  Illinois...  44 

Representative  Samuel  W.  McCall 45 

The  Press  Gallery   49 

The  President  of  the  United  States 53 

De  Watermilion  Hangin'  On  De  Vine 60 

Mr.  Underwood,  of  Alabama  61 

Senator-Elect  Ollie  M.  James 65 

Senator  John  Sharp  Williams 67 

Featured  in  Cartoon  and  Song 73 

Uncle  Joe   74 

Gen.  Hillary  A.   Herbert 75 

Presentation  of  a  Marble  Bust  77 

Speech  of  Mr.  Cannon    81 

"Speed  the  Parting  Guest"  87 

The  Song  That  Reached  My  Heart 88 

Participants    89 

The   Committee    98 

Comments  of  The  Press  99 

Bust  of  Hon.  Joseph  G.  Cannon H>5 


ILLUSTRATIONS 


Facing  Page 

Hon.  B.  S.  Humphreys  .................................  16 

Hon.  J.  Hampton  Moore  ...............................  24 

Hon.  Champ  Clark   ....................................  26 

Senator  Elihu  Root   ...................................  32 

"The  Seven  Ages  of  Cannon"  ...........................  38 

Hon.  Samuel  W.  McCall  ...............................  44 

Hon.  William  H.  Taft  ..................................  52 

Hon.  Oscar  W.  Underwood  ............................  60 

Senator  Ollie  M.  James  .................................  64 

Senator  John  Sharp  Williams  ...........................  66 

"Uncle  Joe"  —  Cartoon    .................................  72 

Hon.  Hillary  A.  Herbert  ...............................  74 

Marble  Bust  of  Cannon  ................................  76 

Hon.  Richard  Bartholdt  ................................  78 

Hon.  Joseph  G.  Cannon  ................................  80 


FOREWORD 

HE  greatest  of  Roman  orators  and  states- 
men regretted  that  "True  friendships 
are  rarely  found  in  those  who  are  occu- 
pied in  the  pursuit  of  honors  and  public  affairs." 

That  Roman  ideals  in  the  days  of  Cicero  do 
not  measure  the  relations  of  American  public 
men  in  the  twentieth  century  was  demonstrated 
in  the  National  capital  on  Saturday  night,  Feb- 
ruary 15,  1913. 

This  demonstration  was  a  dinner  given  in 
honor  of  Joseph  Gurney  Cannon,  the  man  who 
for  forty  years  has  been  in  the  thick  of  American 
political  conflicts,  who  has  ever  been  known  as  a 
partisan  for  principle,  but  who  has  numbered  his 
friends  on  both  sides  of  the  contest  and  in  the 
ranks  of  all  political  parties. 

This  was  the  inspiration  for  the  dinner  to  Mr. 
Cannon  by  his  friends — to  recognize  him  as  a 
FRIEND  whose  personal  relations  are  above 
political  controversy;  and  to  recognize  also  his 
distinguished  service  to  good  government,  hon- 


estly  and  fearlessly  contended  for,  striking  for 
principle  without  personal  animosity. 

Men  of  all  parties  combined  to  arrange  for  this 
dinner  and  men  of  all  parties  and  factions  as- 
sembled as  hosts  to  honor  the  man. 

The  Republican  President,  the  Democratic 
Speaker  of  the  House,  the  Chief  Justice  and  As- 
sociate Justices  of  the  United  States  Supreme 
Court,  Senators  and  Representatives,  officers  of 
the  army  and  navy,  men  in  every  department  of 
official  life  and  in  every  walk  of  civil  life,  holding 
every  political  view  in  the  range  of  American 
politics,  were  assembled  about  the  banquet  board 
to  drink  one  toast  with  the  heartiness  of  admirers 
and  true  lovers — Uncle  Joe,  the  true  friend,  the 
sturdy  patriot,  the  fearless  and  practical  legis- 
lator. 

This  dinner  was  also  something  more  than  a 
demonstration  in  honor  of  Mr.  Cannon.  It  was 
a  truer  picture  of  American  politics  and  men  in 
public  life  in  their  relations  to  each  other  than 
is  usually  represented  in  the  public  prints;  and 
at  the  request  of  many  who  participated  in  the 
event  a  verbatim  report  of  what  was  said  by 
some  of  the  most  distinguished  Americans  of  to- 
day is  here  presented. 


storms  may  rump.  %  uriuos  mag  blow, 
a  V  aajilinna  and  %  pittr-a  mag  fall. 
Sitl  trmumd  to  tit?  smt  ano  snoiu, 
(Thr-  aturdg  oak  mtruturs  thrm  all. 
Ana  00  In  legtsluttur  halls, 

nun  and  mrafiurrs  romp  ano  00, 

fn^nrtng  «roro  ralte, 
Gty*  honor  rrsts  mitt;  Httrlr  ifo*. 


Dinner 


BY  HIS  FRIENDS 


TO  THE 


Honorable  Joseph  G.  Cannon 
of  Illinois 


THE  RALEIGH 

WASHINGTON,  D.  C. 

SATURDAY,  FEBRUARY  FIFTEENTH 

1913 


The  President  of  the  United  States 

The  Honorable  Joseph  G.  Cannon 
of  Illinois 


The  House  will  be  in  order 
THE  CHAPLAIN 

Will  offer  prayer— Cannon  rules 
Will  lead  in  prayer— Clark  version 


ittemt 


GRAPE   FRUIT  WITH   MARASCHINO 
CELERY  SALTED  ALMONDS  OLIVES 

CLEAR   GREEN  TURTLE 

CHESAPEAKE   BASS.  AU   GRATIN 

FILET  OF   BEEF  WITH   FRESH    MUSHROOMS 

NEW  STRING   BEANS  POTATO   CROQUETTES 

ROMAN   PUNCH 

STUFFED   ROYAL  SQUAB,  AU   CRESSON 

HEARTS  OF   LETTUCE   WITH    FRENCH    DRESSING 

FANCY   ICES  ASSORTED  CAKES 

TOASTED  CRACKERS 

CHEESE 
DEMI TASSE 


HON.   B.  G.  HUMPHREYS 


THE  CHAIRMAN 


R.  HUMPHREYS,  of  Mississippi  (chair- 
man of  the  committee).  The  House 
will  please  be  in  order.  I  hope  no  gen- 
tleman here  tonight  has  gotten  the  notion  into 
his  head  that  this  is  a  farewell  dinner.  We  are 
not  here  to  celebrate  any  feast  of  lamentations. 
Through  a  long,  eventful,  patriotic,  and  high- 
purposed  public  career  Mr.  Cannon  has  demon- 
strated that  to  lay  on  him  the  injunction  to  fare- 
well would  be  entirely  superfluous.  [Applause.] 
Those  of  us  who  have  had  the  good  fortune  to 
serve  with  him  through  a  part  of  his  career  have 
simply  gathered  here  to  testify  to  the  high  es- 
teem and  great  respect  which  we  entertain  for 
one  of  the  choice  and  master  spirits  of  the  age. 
[Applause.] 

The  only  regrets  which,  under  the  rules  under 
which  we  proceed  tonight,  will  not  be  declared 
out  of  order  are  those  I  am  going  to  read  now. 
A  great  number  of  gentlemen  from  all  parts  of 


17 


the  country  have  written  their  regrets  at  their  in- 
ability to  be  with  us  tonight.  I  shall  read  only  a 
few  of  their  letters : 

February  12,  1913. 

Hon.  B.  G.  Humphreys, 

House  of  Representatives, 
Washington,  D.  C. 

Honorable  and  Dear  Sir :  It  is  with  sincere  re- 
gret that  I  find  myself  prevented  from  assisting 
at  the  dinner  which  is  being  given  to  my  good 
friend,  Mr.  Cannon,  whom  I  have  known  for  so 
many  years  and  whose  sterling  qualities  of  mind 
and  heart  I  have  always  admired.  It  is  most  fit- 
ting that  Mr.  Cannon's  friends,  who  we  all  know 
are  many,  should  wish  to  tender  him  this  mark  of 
esteem  and  affection  upon  his  retirement  from 
public  life  after  so  many  years  of  faithful  service 
to  his  country  as  Speaker  in  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives, an  office  which  he  filled  with  dignity 
and  ability,  and  I  beg  to  offer  my  most  sincere 
good  wishes  for  his  health  and  prosperity  in  the 
future. 

With  sentiments  of  the  highest  esteem,  I  beg 
to  remain, 

Most  faithfully  yours, 

James  Cardinal  Gibbons, 
Archbishop  of  Baltimore. 

P.  S. — Although  Mr.  Cannon  modestly  con- 
fesses to  be  a  septuagenarian,  he  has  the  mental 
and  physical  vigor  of  a  man  of  50,  and  he  may  yet 
return  to  Congress  and  be  found  at  the  same  old 
stand. 

18 


February  3,  1913. 

Hon.  Eugene  F.  Kinkead, 
House  Building, 

Washington,  D.  C. 

Dear  Sir:  I  should  consider  it  a  great  honor 
and  an  especial  pleasure  to  be  present  at  the  ap- 
proaching public  dinner  of  the  Hon.  Joseph  G. 
Cannon,  of  Illinois.  His  great  services  to  the 
country,  through  so  many  years,  entitle  him  to 
the  finest  tribute  of  the  kind  that  can  be  devised. 

But  I  deeply  regret  to  say  that  at  the  time 
named  I  have  engagements  which  absolutely  for- 
bid me  to  be  present  with  you. 

With  all  good  wishes  for  the  success  of  your 
festival,  and  joining  most  heartily  in  congratula- 
tions to  your  eminent  guest,  I  remain, 

Very  respectfully  yours, 

Andrew  D.  White. 


19 


January  31,  1913. 

Hon.  B.  G.  Humphreys, 

House  of  Representatives, 
Washington,  D.  C. 

My  Dear  Sir:  On  account  of  my  long  friend- 
ship and  esteem  for  the  ex-Speaker  I  would  be 
very  glad  to  show  my  appreciation  of  his  per- 
sonal worth  and  public  services  by  my  presence 
at  the  testimonial  dinner  to  be  given  Mr.  Cannon 
on  the  evening  of  February  15.  I,  however,  ex- 
pect to  be  away  from  the  city  at  that  time,  en- 
gagements already  made  requiring  my  presence 
elsewhere.  Indomitable  will,  sterling  integrity, 
and  clear  and  comprehensive  grasp  and  forcible 
presentation  of  public  questions,  all  intertwined 
with  a  wholesome  good  nature  and  a  keen  sense 
of  humor,  are  traits  not  often  combined,  and 
which  attract  and  endear  Mr.  Cannon  to  a  wide 
circle  of  personal  friends,  and  a  much  wider  one 
of  ardent  admirers. 

Very  truly  yours, 

H.  G.  Davis. 


20 


[Telegram.] 
St.  Louis,  Mo.,  February  13,  1913. 

Hon.  W.  B.  McKinley,  M.  C., 

Washington,  D.  C.: 

Thanks  for  invitation,  and  very  sorry  I  can  not 
be  present  to  join  in  temporary  adieu  to  Uncle 
Joe,  who  is  sure  to  come  back  as  soon  as  he  fin- 
ishes sowing  his  wild  oats. 

Henry  King, 
Editor  St.  Louis  Globe-Democrat. 


21 


And  here  is  a  letter  which  is  written  from  Dan- 
ville, 111.,  by  one  of  those  among  whom  our  dis- 
tinguished guest  has  lived  and  walked  and  had 
his  daily  being: 

February  3,  1913. 

Hon.  E.  F.  Kinkead,  Washington,  D.  C. 

Respected  Sir:  I  deeply  regret  that  I  can  not 
be  present  on  the  isth  instant  to  aid  in  honoring 
my  great  and  good  friend,  Hon.  Joseph  G.  Can- 
non. I  have  known  and  worked  with  him  for  the 
past  40  years.  He  is  of  the  saving  salt  of  the 
earth. 

The  people  of  this  eighteenth  congressional 
district  have  continued  him  in  Congress  for  over 
a  generation  on  account  of  his  genius  for  com- 
mon sense,  his  sterling  integrity,  his  devotion  to 
principle,  and  his  all-around  rugged,  manly, 
moral  qualities.  He  lives  in  their  hearts,  and 
they  will  continue  to  love  and  honor  him  as  a  pri- 
vate citizen  as  faithfully  as  they  have  in  official 
life.  To  us  he  will  be  forever  our  beloved  Uncle 
Joe. 

Respectfully  and  sincerely, 

W.  R.  Jewell, 

Chairman  Republican  Committee 
of  the  Eighteenth  Illinois  Con- 
gressional District. 


22 


Now,  as  I  said  in  the  outset,  there  are  to  be  no 
heavy  hearts  here  tonight.  This  is,  in  fact,  a  re- 
union of  the  light  brigade,  and  mark  how  well 
the  sequel  holds  together :  I  have  Cannon  to  the 
right  of  me  and  big  guns  to  the  left  of  me,  and  I 
am  going  to  call  upon  one  of  these,  the  gentle- 
man from  Pennsylvania,  Mr.  J.  Hampton  Moore, 
to  take  charge  of  this  affair  and  to  indicate  who 
are  to  volley  and  thunder  hereafter.  [Applause.] 


HON.  J.  HAMPTON  MOORE 


The  Toastmaster 

ON.  J.  HAMPTON  MOORE.  Having 
been  delegated  by  the  committee  as 
toastmaster  on  this  occasion,  I  want  to 
announce,  "under  the  rules,"  that  the  insignia  of 
this  office  consist,  first  of  a  blue  pencil,  which  is 
thoroughly  well  understood  in  every  well-regu- 
lated newspaper  office,  and  in  legislative  halls,  as 
an  admonition  to  be  brief,  to  cut  out  extraneous 
matter. 

Second,  a  pair  of  scissors,  which  mean  that  if 
the  old  stories  are  told  too  often  we  may  clip 
them  off.  Those  who  are  to  speak  are  gently 
admonished  that  after  one  or  two  repetitions  of 
"Mr.  Cannon  on  the  Wabash"  the  scissors  will 
be  applied;  that  that  "virile  young  manhood," 
which  is  sometimes  referred  to  in  public  speeches, 
will  also  be  eliminated  after  the  second  utter- 
ance; that  those  who  "came  to  Congress  with 
Mr.  Cannon  in  1812"  need  not  mention  it  after 
the  second  speech.  [Applause  and  laughter.] 

All  speeches  will  be  limited  to  five  minutes, 
and  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  even  the  great  men  who 
are  assembled  here  will  respect  this  rule.  [Ap- 
plause.] 

Third,  and  last  of  the  insignia,  is  the  gavel, 
which  means  authority,  and  it  is  hoped  it  will  be 

25 


respected,  even  though  it  may  be  wielded  by  one 
who  is  inferior  to  the  task  and  purposes  of  this 
entertainment. 

Tonight  we  are  to  show  Mr.  Cannon  we  love 
and  respect  him.  [Applause.]  In  deference  to 
him  and  to  his  family  it  is  announced  now  that 
this  is  to  be  a  feast,  not  a  farewell ;  a  symposium, 
not  a  formality.  We  are  tonight 

"To  frame  our  mind  to  mirth  and  merriment, 
Which  bars  a  thousand  harms  and  lengthens 
life." 

[Applause.]     [After  a  pause:] 


HON.  CHAMP  CLARK 
SPEAKER  OF  THE  HOUSE 


Mr.  Speaker  Clark 

At  this  table  sits  the  greatest  Speaker  of  the 
House  of  Representatives  since  the  days  of  Can- 
non. [Applause  and  laughter.]  Over  in  the 
House  we  regard  him,  mentally  and  in  physique, 
as  the  most  imposing  figure  that  has  occupied  the 
Chair  in  half  a  dozen  generations.  So  big  do  we 
regard  him  that  nothing  short  of  the  Presidency 
will  satisfy  the  most  of  us.  [Applause.]  Gentle- 
men, the  Hon.  Champ  Clark,  of  Missouri.  [Ap- 
plause.] 


PEAKER  CLARK.  That  first  state- 
ment of  the  toastmaster  about  "my 
being  the  greatest  Speaker  since  the 
days  of  Cannon"  reminds  me  of  the  schoolboy 
who  said  he  stood  next  to  the  head  of  his  class, 
and  his  daddy  inquired  and  found  there  were 
only  two  in  the  class.  [Applause  and  laughter.] 
I  am  glad  to  be  here  tonight  to  help  give  a 
pleasant  evening  to  one  of  the  greatest  of  all 
my  predecessors  in  the  chair  of  the  House  of 
Representatives.  [Applause.]  That  is  what  his- 
tory will  have  to  say,  no  difference  what  the 
Members  who  have  scrapped  with  him  thought; 
and  they  thought  he  was  a  good  deal  of  a  man, 

27 


too,  while  he  was  scrapping  with  them.  [Ap- 
plause.] 

I  am  the  thirty-sixth  of  the  line,  not  counting 
one  man  who,  for  some  unaccountable  reason, 
was  elected  Speaker  for  one  day.  That  is  one  of 
the  puzzles  of  history  to  me.  There  have  been  a 
whole  lot  of  Speakers  pro  tempore  elected,  but 
one  man  was  actually  elected  Speaker  for  one 
day.  That  was  Theodore  M.  Pomeroy.  Schuy- 
ler  Colfax  was  going  out  of  the  office  of  Speaker 
into  the  office  of  Vice-President,  and  all  he  had 
to  do  was  to  walk  six  or  seven  hundred  feet  to 
the  other  end  of  the  Capitol  and  be  sworn  in ;  but 
on  the  evening  of  the  2d  of  March  he  resigned  the 
office  of  Speaker.  So  if  you  count  Mr.  Pomeroy 
I  am  the  thirty-seventh  of  the  lot.  The  way  I 
found  out  about  him  was  because  Congress 
passed  a  law  authorizing  the  painting  of  oil  por- 
traits of  all  the  Speakers  to  be  placed  in  the  lobby 
of  the  House;  and  Mr.  Pomeroy's  grandson 
wrote  to  me  and  wanted  to  know  if  he  came  in 
on  one  of  those  $500  portraits  up  there.  So  I  got 
a  piece  of  history  that  I  was  not  fishing  for. 

There  have  been  five  or  six  great  Speakers 
who  have  had  a  dominating  spirit  and  everything 
greased  for  them,  and  good  machines  at  their 
hands,  and  they  made  great  reputations;  but  no 
man  will  ever  make  a  great  reputation  in  that 
chair  unless  he  is  lavishly  endowed  with  common 
sense  [applause] ;  because,  after  all,  that  is  all 

28 


there  is  to  it.  And  of  all  the  men  I  have  met  in 
my  goings  to  and  fro,  and  tabernacling  in  the 
flesh,  I  write  Uncle  Joe  down  as  one  of  the  most 
thoroughly  common-sense  men  that  ever  came 
down  the  congressional  pike.  [Applause.] 

I  do  not  take  much  stock  in  farewell  dinners, 
or  funerals,  or  weddings.  I  had  just  about  as  lief 
go  to  a  funeral  as  a  wedding,  with  the  exception 
of  my  own.  Uncle  Joe  goes ;  but  I  am  not  sure 
but  that  like  Cataline,  "he  goes,  but  he  returns." 
[Applause  and  laughter.]  That  would  be  the 
only  resemblance  I  ever  heard  of  between  the 
two.  [Applause.] 

The  man  who  has  never  been  in  the  Army  can 
never  have  any  conception  of  the  feeling  which 
men  have  for  one  another  who  have  fought  side 
by  side  and  shoulder  to  shoulder  in  the  face  of 
death ;  but  next  to  that  I  think  the  fellow  feeling 
between  men  who  fight  in  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives— because  that  is  where  the  fighting  is 
done — is  next  to  the  fellow  feeling  of  having 
fought  in  the  Army  together;  and  the  men  who 
fight  the  hardest  against  each  other  have  the 
greatest  respect  for  each  other. 

I  have  not  the  slightest  idea  that  the  next  two 
years  are  going  to  be  dull  or  heavy  on  Uncle 
Joe's  hands.  He  knows  how  to  entertain  him- 
self, and  he  knows  how  to  entertain  others. 
[Laughter.]  There  is  one  thing  I  have  been 
trying  to  get  him  to  do.  He  has  never  promised 

29 


me  to  do  it.  He  owes  it  to  the  people  of  the 
United  States  in  general  and  to  the  coming  Con- 
gresses in  particular  to  write  a  book  of  reminis- 
cences. [Applause.]  Amongst  his  other  quali- 
ties there  is  not  a  man  within  my  acquaintance, 
which  is  somewhat  extensive,  who  can  beat  him 
telling  an  anecdote  or  a  reminiscence.  He  holds 
the  belt,  as  a  prizefighter  would  say,  for  length  of 
service  in  the  House  of  Representatives.  In  124 
years  no  man  has  succeeded  in  serving  in  that 
House  40  years.  Mr.  Cannon  has  served  38,  and 
if  he  had  not  been  beaten  once  he  would  be  serv- 
ing his  fortieth  year.  If  I  had  not  been  beaten 
once  I  would  be  serving  my  twentieth.  It  does 
not  hurt  much  to  get  beat.  [Applause.]  The 
man  who  served  the  longest  in  the  two  Houses 
of  Congress  put  together  was  Senator  Allison. 
He  served  43^  years  in  the  two  Houses  of  Con- 
gress. 

When  I  came  here  first  there  was  a  supersti- 
tion that  no  man  ever  would  serve  30  years  in  the 
House.  They  would  get  past  29 — two  or  three 
of  them  did — but  they  would  die  before  they 
reached  the  thirtieth  year,  and  Judge  Holman,  of 
Indiana,  was  the  first  man  who  ever  broke  the 
hoodoo.  [Laughter.]  Now,  the  40  years  that 
Uncle  Joe  has  been  in  public  life,  including  the 
time  he  was  circuit  attorney  in  Illinois,  about  the 
time  Lincoln  was  elected  President,  or  a  little 
after,  have  brought  him  into  contact,  first  and 

30 


last,  with  nearly  every  prominent  man  in  the 
United  States  and  with  a  great  many  who  are  not 
in  the  United  States,  and  if  he  can  write  as  well 
as  he  can  talk  his  reminiscences  would  make  a 
book  that  would  discount  Boswell's  "Life  of 
Johnson,"  because  he  has  known  better  men  and 
greater  men  and  more  of  them. 

Now,  I  am  not  going  to  detain  this  audience 
under  the  five-minute  rule,  but  I  will  say  that 
after  18  years  of  battling  with  Uncle  Joe  I  wish 
for  him  prosperity,  happiness,  and  length  of  days. 
[Prolonged  applause.] 


SENATOR  ELIHU  ROOT 


Senator  Elihu  Root 

Toastmaster  Moore.  There  is  no  partisanship 
in  this  meeting.  All  think  alike  tonight  in  honor 
of  our  guest.  You  know  there  is  not  so  much 
credit  in  presiding  over  a  national  convention, 
such  as  that  at  Baltimore,  that  nominates  a  can- 
didate for  President  who  is  elected,  but  there  is 
vast  credit  due  to  the  man  who  presides  over  a 
convention  at  Chicago  that  nominates  a  candi- 
date for  President  who  is  not  elected.  [Laughter 
and  applause.]  And  the  man  who  presided  over 
that  great  convention  and  who  is  entitled  to  all 
the  honors  that  result  therefrom  [laughter]  is 
the  distinguished  Senator  from  New  York,  Elihu 
Root,  whom  I  now  have  the  pleasure  of  present- 
ing. [Applause.] 

ENATOR  ROOT.  Mr.  Toastmaster, 
Mr.  Chairman,  and  my  dear  Uncle 
Joseph,  I  am  glad  to  congratulate  you 
upon  your  approaching  vacation.  If  any  man  in 
this  world,  by  reason  of  truly  religious  service,  is 
entitled  to  a  sabbatical  year,  you  are  entitled  to 
it  after  this  long  period  of  public  service. 
[Applause.] 

I  know  that  it  is  only  a  vacation,  because  if  the 
people  of  the  Danville  district  do  not  get  over 

33 


their  brief  aberration  within  two  years  you  have 
only  to  come  to  New  York  and  I  will  turn  over 
to  you  a  place  in  the  other  coordinate  branch  of 
the  legislative  department  of  the  Government 
where  you  can  exercise  the  salutary  influence  by 
which  you  have  made  the  House  of  Representa- 
tives the  great  and  efficient  body  that  it  is.  [Ap- 
plause.] 

I  am  glad  to  congratulate  you,  not  only  be- 
cause there  are  a  thousand  reminiscences  that 
make  me  feel  kindly  to  you,  as  men  who  have 
fought  together  do  feel  toward  each  other,  but 
because  you  are  real.  [Cries  of  "Good,"  and 
prolonged  applause.] 

There  is  nothing  in  public  life,  I  think,  of 
which  a  man  gets  more  tired  than  of  lying  and 
humbug.  [Applause.]  It  is  very  hard  for  all  of 
us  to  talk  to  people  from  a  public  stage  as  we  talk 
to  each  other.  It  is  very  hard  for  all  of  us  to  tell 
the  truth  when  we  are  talking  to  the  people.  It 
is  very  hard  for  all  of  us  to  tell  the  truth  when  we 
think  it  will  hurt  us.  It  is  very  hard  for  all  of  us  to 
keep  our  promises.  But  in  the  world  of  humbug, 
I  am  glad  to  do  honor  to  a  man  who  has  always 
had  the  courage  of  his  convictions  [cheers  and  ap- 
plause], the  courage  to  say  what  he  believes,  to 
say  nothing  that  he  does  not  believe  [applause], 
and  to  act  according  to  his  convictions. 

I  remember  some  years  ago  saying  that  if 
Uncle  Joe  were  not  so  old,  nothing  on  earth  could 

34 


keep  him  from  being  nominated  for  the  Presi- 
dency— and  it  was  true.  All  of  a  sudden  came 
along  a  situation  in  which  he  was  called  upon  to 
act  at  the  behest  of  great  and  powerful  influence, 
and  he  refused,  because  he  did  not  think  it  would 
be  right  to  do  it ;  and  then  was  begun  the  cry  of 
"Cannonism."  He  has  outlived  it.  I  would  like 
to  hold  up  for  the  contemplation  of  the  people  of 
the  United  States  the  example  of  this  man,  who 
dared  to  become  unpopular  by  doing  what  he  be- 
lieved to  be  his  duty  and  who  has  outlived  it. 
[Applause.] 

There  is  another  reason  why  I  am  glad  to  do 
you  honor — because  you  stand  for  all  the  people 
of  the  United  States.  Your  own  experience  in 
Congress,  the  variety  of  positions  you  have  held, 
your  long  service  as  chairman  of  the  Committee 
on  Appropriations,  called  upon  to  consider  the 
interests  of  every  part  of  the  country,  your  long 
service  as  Speaker  of  the  House,  have  made  you 
the  representative  not  alone  of  the  Danville  dis- 
trict, but  of  the  people  of  the  United  States. 
[Applause.] 

Let  me  say  to  you,  my  friends  in  the  Senate 
and  the  House  who  are  here,  that  the  great  rea- 
son why  the  Executive  is  able  to  command  the 
sympathy  of  the  people  of  the  United  States 
against  Congress  so  frequently  is  that  the  people 
think  we  are  representing  our  selfish  local  inter- 
ests, while  he  represents  the  whole  people;  and 

35 


for  the  dignity,  the  influence,  and  the  power  of 
the  legislative  branch  of  the  United  States  Gov- 
ernment it  is  well  for  us  to  do  honor  to  the  man 
who  represents  not  alone  his  own  district  but  all 
the  people  of  the  country.  [Applause.] 

I  am  glad  to  do  you  honor  for  another  reason — 
because  looking  about  me  and  seeing  Standpat- 
ters and  Progressives  and  Democrats  of  all 
shades  and  stripes  of  opinion,  I  see  in  this  meet- 
ing that  we  are  not  becoming  Mexicanized ;  I  see 
in  the  fact  that  we  all  do  honor  to  the  hardest 
hitter,  to  the  boldest  Speaker,  to  the  man  who 
has  never  hesitated  to  express  and  stand  by  his 
opinions,  however  they  might  differ  from  the 
opinions  of  others,  I  see  in  this  general  concur- 
rence of  honor  and  affection  for  him,  that  still 
underlying  all  the  storm  and  stress  of  American 
politics  is  the  genuine  American  spirit  of  brother- 
hood toward  all  Americans.  [Prolonged  ap- 
plause.] 


Toastmaster  Moore.  Sixty-eight  years  ago 
today,  upon  a  farm  in  Oneida  County,  N.  Y.,  was 
brought  into  this  world  a  little  boy,  who  grew  up 
to  be  a  lawyer;  being  appointed  subsequently  to 

36 


the  President's  Cabinet;  he  became  a  great  Sec- 
retary of  War,  the  pacificator  of  the  Latin- 
American  Republics;  is  now  a  Senator  of  the 
United  States,  who,  in  the  very  acme  of  his  ca- 
reer, upon  his  birthday,  this  very  night,  delivered 
the  oration  you  heard  a  few  moments  ago.  [Ap- 
plause.] Without  rising  will  you  drink  to  the 
health  of  Senator  Root,  and  as  you  do  so,  salute 
him  by  name.  [Applause  and  cries  of  "Root, 
Root."] 


"THE  SEVEN  AGES  OF  CANNON" 


The  Seven  Ages  of  Gannon 

HERE  will  now  be  an  innovation  by  a 
Shakespearean  scholar  of  note  in  Wash- 
ington,  Mr.   Henry  L.   West,   of  The 
Gridiron  Club. 

The  lights  were  extinguished  and  upon  a  screen 
were  thrown  a  series  of  lantern  slide  portraits  of 
Mr.  Cannon,  while  Mr.  West  recited  the  fol- 
lowing : 

All  the  world's  a  stage, 
And  all  the  men  and  women  merely  players, 
Making  their  exits  and  their  entrances, 
And  one  man  in  his  time  plays  many  parts, 
His  acts  being  seven  ages.    First,  the  infant 
Not  muling  and  puking  in  his  nurse's  arms, 
But  strong  and  sturdy  from  his  very  birth, 
Full  of  strange  oaths  and  bearded  like  a  pard ; 
Drawing  his  sustenance  from  a  big,  black  cigar, 
And  not  from  any  bottle.    Next  the  schoolboy 
Studying  the  rules  which  he  himself  hath  writ. 
His  favorite  book  a  work  on  Parliamentary  Law 
Compiled   by  Asher   Hinds.     Then   a    country 

lawyer, 

Wearing  a  black  slouch  hat  and  long  frock  coat, 
His  fees  unfortunately  small  and  his  clients  just 

as  few 


39 


As  there  will  be  Republicans  in  the  next  House. 

Then  seeking  reputation  at  the  ballot  box, 

He  next  becomes  a  member  of  the  House, 

Disbursing  offices  and  garden  seeds, 

And  placing  Danville,  Illinois,  upon  the  map. 

Behold  him  sitting  at  his  office  desk, 

Giving  an  imitation  of  a  man  at  work. 

Then,  as  the   Speaker  of  the  House  the  gavel 

holds, 

An  autocrat,  a  law  unto  himself,  yet  ruling  well. 
The  sixth  stage  is  the  guest  of  honor  everywhere. 
A  welcome  guest  where'er  good  fellowship 
Binds  human  hearts  as  it  does  here  tonight. 
And  "in  the  last  analysis"  we  see  him  as  himself, 
A  man  whose  rugged  frame  doth  laugh  to  scorn 
The  very  god  of  time.    Upon  his  head 
The  burdens  of  the  years  do  lightly  press. 
Undaunted  by  defeat  and  destined  yet 
To  swing  the  battle  axe  and  crack  some  heads. 
To  him  we  do  not  say  "farewell"  but  "We  will 

see  you  later." 
Sans    job,    sans    salary,    sans    everything — but 

friends. 
[Applause.] 


Pleasantries  from  the  Chair 

OASTMASTER  MOORE.  I  have  been 
requested  to  ask  if  William  B.  McKin- 
ley  is  in  the  hall.  If  he  is,  will  he  kindly 
listen?  The  waiters  will  subside  for  a  moment. 
Mr.  McKinley  will  kindly  rise  to  his  feet.  And 
is  Mr.  Martin  B.  Madden  in  the  hall?  If  so,  will 
he  rise?  And  Mr.  Ira  C.  Copley — is  he  in  the 
hall?  Now,  gentlemen,  you  look  upon  the  spec- 
tacle of  the  three  millionaires  of  Illinois. 
[Laughter  and  applause.]  The  richest  of  them 
is  Mr.  Copley.  All  of  them  are  on  the  dinner 
committee,  and  have  requested  that  they  be  not 
called  upon,  with  the  single  exception  of  Mr. 
Martin  B.  Madden,  who  will  not  be.  [Laughter.] 
I  have  also  been  asked  to  inquire  if  the  Hon. 
James  R.  Mann  is  in  the  hall.  If  so,  will  he 
kindly  rise?  [Applause  and  cries  of  "Mann! 
Mann!"]  I  ask  you  all  to  gaze  upon  this  fine 
figure  standing  out  against  the  background  of 
festive  smilax.  He  is  the  leader  of  the  Republi- 
can minority  in  the  House.  [Applause.]  While 
in  Porto  Rico  some  time  ago,  a  delegate  in  the 
assembly  there  shook  hands  with  Mr.  Mann  and 
said,  "Sir,  I  know  you  well.  I  have  read  every 
one  of  your  speeches."  [Laughter.]  Thereupon 
the  late  Vice-President  of  the  United  States,  Mr. 


41 


Sherman,  said  "You  must  be  the  busiest  man  on 
the  island."  [Laughter.]  [After  a  pause.]  It 
is  not  often,  gentlemen,  that  a  mere  tyro  in  these 
matters  has  an  opportunity  to  hold  up  his  boss. 
Mr.  Mann,  your  time  has  expired.  [Prolonged 
laughter  and  applause.] 


The  Toastmaster.  The  Gridiron  Club  and 
Uncle  Joe  are  the  most  celebrated  institutions  in 
Washington,  and  The  Gridiron  Club  is  here  rep- 
resented by  its  famous  quartette.  We'll  hear 
from  Henry  Stevens  and  the  Gridiron  Quartette. 


f 


When  That  Midnight  Choo,  Choo,  Leaves 
For  Illinois. 

I  have  no  briney  tears  to  shed, 

I'm  very,  very  far  from  dead, 

But  I'm  going  to  give  to  Congress  my  adeau  (adieu)  ; 

The  Democrats  have  beaten  me, 

But  I'll  get  even  yet,  you  see; 

There  are  some  friends  at  home  to  stand  by  me, 

So  tonight  you  find  me  singing  happily. 

CHORUS  : 

When  that  Midnight  Choo,  Choo,  leaves  for  Illinois, 
I'll  be  right  there, 
I've  got  my  fare; 

When  I  see  that  rusty  haired  conductor  man, 
I'll  grab  him  by  the  collar, 
Then  I'll  holler 
Illinois !    Illinois ! 
That's  where  you  stop  your  train, 
That  takes  me  back  again 
Home  to  my  friends  again; 
Then  we'll  make  some  noise,  boys; 
I  will  be  right  there  with  bells, 
When  that  old  conductor  yells 
All  aboard  !    All  aboard ! 
All  aboard  for  Illinois. 

I  really  hate  to  say  good-bye, 
I  don't  believe  I'd  better  try, 
Because  I'm  sure  I'm  coming  back  some  day, 
I'm  going  to  show  that  I  can  fight, 
And  I  can  lick  them,  too,  alright; 
But  I  will  not  have  to  travel  all  alone, 
There  are  others  who  can  in  this  chorus  join. 
CHORUS  : 


HON.  SAMUEL  W.  MCCALL 


Representative  Samuel  W.  McCall 

Toastmaster  Moore .  Gentlemen,  the  iron  heel 
of  the  Chair  will  be  used  in  enforcing  the  rules 
[laughter],  and  you  will  respect  them,  of  course. 
We  have  at  this  head  table  tonight  the  Chief  Jus- 
tice of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States, 
but  the  tradition  which  holds  with  respect  to  that 
office  forbids  him  to  speak  on  an  occasion  of  this 
kind.  In  his  stead,  happily,  we  have  one  who 
combines  not  only  the  judicial  qualities,  but  also 
the  legislative  and  executive,  a  leader  of  the 
House  of  Representatives  and  a  scholar  in  poli- 
tics, the  Hon.  Samuel  W.  McCall,  of  Massachu- 
setts. [Applause.] 

R.  McCALL.  Mr.  President,  you  have 
given  me  a  rather  large  contract  to  fill, 
to  respond  for  the  Chief  Justice  and 
associate  justices  and  the  executive  and  legisla- 
tive departments  of  the  Government.  It  is  very 
evident  that  this  occasion  is  not  taking  on  the 
appearance  of  obsequies  [laughter]  ;  that  it  is  not 
celebrating  or  commemorating  the  passing  of  a 
figure.  It  is  not  commemorating  the  ending  of  a 
career.  It  seems  by  common  consent  to  be  an 
"au  revoir"  dinner.  There  seems  to  be  the  im- 
pression that  the  public  career  of  Uncle  Joe  is 

45 


not  ended.  In  the  first  place  he  has  a  passion  for 
the  public  service,  an  instinct  for  it;  in  the  next 
place  he  has  the  spirit  of  unquenchable  youth; 
and  in  the  next  he  has  a  constituency  that  is  de- 
voted to  him,  and  that  has  pouted  only  twice  in 
40  years.  It  is  inevitable,  therefore,  with  all 
these  qualities  of  youth  and  instinct,  and  the  de- 
votion of  his  constituency,  that  the  Sixty-fourth 
Congress  will  see  him  back  again  in  Washington. 
[Applause.] 

He  is  a  man  who  has  the  affection  of  his  po- 
litical opponents  as  well  as  of  his  political 
friends.  I  think  there  has  been  no  time  since 
I  have  served  in  Washington  that  he  has  not 
been  the  most  popular  man  on  both  sides  of 
the  House.  He  is  most  effective  in  the  ordinary 
business  of  the  House,  and  he  easily  rises  to 
great  occasions,  as  he  did  three  years  ago  at  the 
height  of  the  unpleasantness,  when,  after  a  three 
days'  battle  when  the  House  was  charged  with 
excitement,  when  men  had  come  to  witness  the 
contest  from  all  over  the  country,  he  rose,  even 
as  admitted  by  those  who  differed  with  him,  to 
the  proportions  of  a  hero. 

Since  he  came  here  from  the  year  1872  to  the 
present  time,  he  has  been  associated  with  some 
of  the  greatest  men  who  have  ever  served  in  Con- 
gress, from  Elaine  and  Garfield  to  Reed  and  Mc- 
Kinley,  and  he  has  shown  himself  their  fit  com- 
panion. We  are  commemorating  tonight  a 

46 


strong  career,  that  of  a  man  who  has  shown  that 
he  is  adapted  in  as  high  degree  as  any  man  of  his 
time  to  the  strenuous  contests  of  parliamentary 
service.  It  is  significant  that  gentlemen  of  all 
parties  should  be  here  tonight,  vicing  with  each 
other  in  showing  their  respect  for  a  statesman 
who  is  thoroughly  human,  who  affects  no  dignity, 
and  does  not  belong  to  what  is  called  the  "frock- 
coat"  school,  a  statesman  of  real  ability,  of  gen- 
uine worth,  and  of  sterling  honesty,  who  is  con- 
cerned to  secure  the  best  interests  of  the  whole 
country  and  is  brave  to  go  only  where  his  best 
judgment  leads — I  say  we  do  ourselves  honor 
tonight  in  honoring  Uncle  Joe  Cannon.  [Pro- 
longed applause.] 


The  Press  Gallery 

HE  Fourth  Estate  claimed  its  place  on  the 
programme  on  the  ground  that  Mr. 
Cannon  having  been  in  the  public  eye 
for  half  a  century  had  furnished  more  copy  for 
the  newspapers  than  any  other  living  man,  and 
his  relations  with  the  Washington  correspond- 
ents had  been  that  of  a  friend  as  well  as  a  victim. 
As  humor  distorts  nothing  and  false  gods  are 
laughed  off  their  earthly  pedestals,  the  stunt 
which  the  newspaper  correspondents  pulled  off 
during  the  course  of  the  dinner  deserves  more 
than  a  mere  word  in  passing,  for  the  little  foibles 
of  the  distinguished  guests  were  touched  upon  in 
a  manner  that,  while  exceedingly  funny  and  some- 
times a  bit  satirical,  left  no  hurt  behind. 

Seven  correspondents,  Edgar  C.  Snyder,  of 
the  Omaha  Bee;  E.  B.  Clark,  of  the  Chicago 
Evening  Post;  Robert  H.  Patchin,  of  the  New 
York  Herald;  George  Miller,  of  the  Detroit 
News ;  Oswald  F.  Schuette,  of  the  Chicago  Inter- 
Ocean;  Gus  J.  Karger,  of  the  Cincinnati  Times- 
Star,  and  Theodore  Tiller,  of  the  Washington 
Times,  appeared  in  a  small  gallery  overlooking 
the  banquet  hall  which  had  been  arranged  to  rep- 
resent a  section  of  the  press  gallery  in  the  hall 

49 


of  the  House  of  Representatives,  with  a  painted 
representation  of  the  clock  which  hangs  over  the 
Speaker's  rostrum  the  central  feature  of  the 
scene.  The  "boys"  were  supposed  to  be  there  for 
work  rather  than  recreation  and  for  the  purpose 
of  reporting  the  debate  on  the  floor  below.  They 
made  remarks  as  to  the  characteristics  of  the  gen- 
tlemen as  they  were  inquired  about  by  Mr.  Sny- 
der,  who  impersonated  a  cub  reporter  whose 
knowledge  of  the  attainments  of  the  well-known 
men  in  public  life  was  necessarily  nebulous  in 
view  of  his  supposed  late  advent  as  a  member  of 
the  correspondents'  corps. 

The  act  was  inaugurated  with  much  noise  on 
the  part  of  the  correspondents  as  they  took  their 
places  along  the  gallery  rail  to  watch  the  scene 
below.  Their  loud  conversation  and  cries  for 
"Western  Union,"  "Postal,"  "messenger  boy" 
called  for  a  stern  rebuke  from  Mr.  Moore,  the 
toastmaster. 

"You  gentlemen  of  the  press  must  observe  the 
rule  as  to  noise  and  confusion  in  the  gallery," 
said  the  toastmaster,  as  he  banged  the  table  with 
his  gavel  thereby  attracting  the  attention  of  the 
diners  to  the  gallery. 

"We  have  a  right  to  be  here  under  the  Consti- 
tution," said  the  cub  reporter,  promptly. 

'The  Fourth  Estate  is  indeed  powerful  and 
inspiring,  but  it  does  not  yet  control  the  House," 
said  the  toastmaster.  "You  occupy  the  press  gal- 


lery  by  courtesy  of  this  body  and  you  must  be  in 
order." 

"But,  Mr.  Speaker,  we  represent  the  great 
newspapers ;  they  want  to  be  heard,"  replied  the 
cub  reporter. 

"Well,  gentlemen,"  said  Mr.  Moore,  "you  know 
very  well  this  question  is  not  debatable.  More- 
over, many  of  the  men  who  own  the  Fourth  Es- 
tate and  pay  your  enormous  salaries  are  here  wit- 
nesses of  this  exhibition — warm  friends  of  the 
honored  guest  of  the  occasion,  like  Mr.  Herman 
Ridder,  Frank  A.  Munsey,  John  A.  Sleicher,  Gen. 
Felix  Agnus,  Rudolph  Kauffmann,  Ira  E.  Ben- 
nett and  John  Suter,  President  of  the  National 
Press  Club.  Do  you  think  you  can  afford  to  in- 
terrupt these  proceedings  under  the  circum- 
stances?" 

"Yes,  we  do,"  responded  the  cub  reporter. 

"Very  well,"  said  the  toastmaster,  "you  may 
proceed  in  your  own  time  and  at  your  own  risk." 

And  then  followed  a  ludicrous  series  of  ques- 
tions and  answers  between  the  correspondents, 
much  as  might  in  fact  have  taken  place  in  the 
real  instead  of  the  pseudo  press  gallery  of  the 
House  of  Representatives ;  while  those  who  fur- 
nished material  for  the  colloquialism  were  not 
backward  in  voicing  their  approbation  of  the 
quips  at  their  expense. 

The  press  chaff  flew  everywhere  and  at  every- 
body, at  the  President  of  the  United  States,  the 

51 


Supreme  Court,  the  Speaker  of  the  House,  the 
grave  and  reverend  Senators  and  the  Represen- 
tatives. It  was  like  Charity  and  covered  all,  and 
they  all  laughed  at  each  other  and  at  themselves. 
"The  gallery"  reserved  for  the  last  Uncle  Joe 
himself  and  threw  their  chaff  in  his  direction, 
quoting  some  of  his  celebrated  sayings  and  re- 
ferring to  some  of  his  immortal  doings  with  the 
discovery  that  after  all  his  years  in  the  public 
service  there  was  no  statute  of  the  United  States 
that  had  been  christened  the  Cannon  bill,  no  law 
to  which  his  name  had  been  attached  and  stands 
as  a  milestone  for  future  ages  to  know  that  Uncle 
Joe  once  served  his  country  in  the  House  of  Rep- 
resentatives. And  there  the  Fourth  Estate  sup- 
plied a  text  for  the  President  of  the  United  States. 


HON.  WILLIAM  H.  TAFT 

PRESIDENT  OF  THE   UNITED  STATES 


The  President  of  the  United  States 

Toastmaster  Moore.  Though  the  evening  is 
still  young,  we  have  much  yet  to  do  and  may  not 
delay. 

Gentlemen,  to  be  the  first  amongst  a  hundred 
million  people  of  the  temper  and  intelligence  of 
those  of  the  United  States  is  the  greatest  honor 
on  earth.  "All  the  world  loves  a  lover,"  and  all 
the  world  esteems  a  good  loser. 

I  announce  the  President  of  the  United  States. 
[Great  applause.] 

HE  PRESIDENT.  Mr.  Chairman,  Mr. 
Toastmaster,  and  gentlemen,  I  have 
come  here  tonight  to  express  two  feel- 
ings: One  of  sympathy  with  the  gentleman  who 
professes  to  be  about  to  go  out  of  public  life  at 
the  same  time  that  I  am  a  dissolving  view 
[laughter],  and  to  show  by  coming  here  how 
profoundly  I  respect  him  as  a  great  American 
who,  by  many  decades  of  disinterested  patriotic 
service,  has  earned  the  verdict  of  "well  done" 
from  his  countrymen.  [Applause.] 

I  do  not  feel  very  old,  and  I  am  not  very  old, 
but  I  think  there  are  few  men  present  at  this 
meeting  who  are  as  old  in  the  public  service  as  I 

53 


am,  with  reference  to  association  with  Uncle  Joe. 
I  was  here  22  years  ago  to  interview  him  on  be- 
half of  the  Department  of  Justice  about  the  in- 
crease of  what  I  regarded  as  needed  appropria- 
tions. I  have  had  ever  since  a  good  deal  of  ex- 
perience with  chairmen  of  appropriations  com- 
mittees, and  I  am  bound  to  say  that  the  abrupt- 
ness and  the  firmness  and  the  somewhat  inele- 
gant expressions  that  I  have  heard  in  modern 
days  had  their  counterpart  in  those  early  days  of 
the  Republic.  [Laughter.] 

Another  thing  that  moves  me  to  come  here  is 
that  I  believe  that  Uncle  Joe  Cannon  and  I  have 
passed  through  something  of  the  same  storm  of 
muckraking  and  misrepresentation  [applause], 
that  we  are  able  to  look  back  upon  it  all  with  the 
philosophy  and  calm  hope  that  it  will  fall  away 
as  for  nothing  [applause],  and  that  what  has 
been  done  in  our  public  careers  will  be  subjected 
to  just  examination  and  criticism,  away  from  the 
lurid  light  of  headlines,  in  the  cold  but  careful 
and  fair  examination  of  the  historian.  [Ap- 
plause.] 

I  observe  that  by  those  who  sat  above  us  and 
who  selected  the  defects  most  conspicuous  or 
supposed  to  be  most  conspicuous  in  us,  the  in- 
quiry was  made  as  to  what  statute  Uncle  Joe 
Cannon's  name  was  attached.  That  is  one  of  the 
unfair  questions  that  men  will  put  who  do  not 
understand  what  goes  to  make  up  a  great  Gov- 

54 


emment  and  what  goes  to  make  up  a  great  public 
service.  The  men  who  are  looking  about  and 
laboring  to  find  subjects  matter  and  statutes  with 
which  their  names  may  be  connected,  in  order 
that  they  may  claim  in  history  the  authorship  of 
progress,  are  not  the  men  who  make  the  progress 
in  this  country.  [Loud  applause.] 

The  conscientious  struggle  which  the  chair- 
man of  the  Appropriations  Committee  has  to 
make  in  Congress — and  it  is  conscientious — to 
keep  down  the  expenditures  within  the  possible 
revenues  is  a  labor  that  no  one  can  realize  except 
those  who  come  into  close  contact  with  the  dis- 
charge of  that  responsibility.  They  are  known 
for  the  time  being  as  the  heads  of  the  Appropria- 
tions Committees,  but  the  appropriation  bills  do 
not  carry  their  names.  The  character  of  the  ap- 
propriation bills  is  not  understood  by  the  public, 
so  that  these  bills  can  not  be  referred  to  as  a 
basis  of  a  great  parliamentary  reputation.  And 
yet  the  fact  is  that  in  that  committee  harder  and 
more  conscientious  work  is  done  than  in  any 
other  committee  in  Congress.  Its  members  are 
struggling  constantly  against  the  human  nature 
of  their  fellows,  they  are  standing  up  against  that 
which  they  have  to  recognize  as  the  weakness  of 
man,  and  they  are  not  receiving  any  meed  of 
praise  from  anybody,  because  everybody  is 
against  them  for  opposing  appropriations — until 
after  the  session  is  over,  and  then  everybody  crit- 

55 


icizes  them  because  of  the  largeness  of  the  ap- 
propriations.    [Laughter.] 

I  have  referred  to  a  part  of  Uncle  Joe's  service 
in  Congress.  The  other  part  I  have  had  more 
familiarity  with.  As  Speaker  of  the  House, 
under  the  system  which  then  prevailed,  he  had 
to  control  the  legislation,  he  had  to  lead  the  ma- 
jority, and  had  much  influence  with  reference  to 
the  bills  which  were  selected  for  consideration 
and  passage.  For  that  work  the  country  owes 
him  a  debt  of  great  gratitude.  The  history  of 
the  Republican  Party  while  he  was  Speaker  is 
largely  a  history  of  the  statutes  that  he  discrimi- 
nated in  favor  of  and  the  defeat  of  the  statutes 
that  he  discriminated  against.  [Applause.]  If 
that  record  is  honorable  to  the  party  and  hon- 
orable to  the  country,  to  Joseph  G.  Cannon  is 
largely  due  the  credit.  At  times  we  are  all 
dazed — at  least  I  am — with  the  dreadfully  diffi- 
cult work  that  the  Judge  of  All  will  have  to  do 
in  determining  the  merits  of  the  individuals  who 
will  come  before  Him  when  we  all  pass  in  review 
on  the  last  day  of  judgment.  As  applied  to  the 
world  at  large,  to  ordinary  communities,  that 
task  seems  difficult  enough;  but  when  it  comes 
to  awarding  merit  with  reference  to  public  men 
at  Washington,  it  is  a  difficulty  that  seems  insur- 
mountable. In  trying  to  sift  out  the  reward  that 
is  due  and  the  condemnation  that  is  due,  it  needs 
a  close  knowledge  of  how  legislation  is  intro- 

56 


duced,  how  it  is  considered,  and  how  it  is  ulti- 
mately passed. 

The  methods  of  Uncle  Joe  with  reference  to 
the  government  of  the  House  of  Representatives 
at  times  have  been  severely  condemned,  and 
then  they  have  been  vindicated  by  the  action  of 
his  opponents  in  adopting  the  same  course,  and 
in  coming  around  to  the  same  necessity  that  he 
recognized  earlier,  to  wit,  that  you  must  have 
responsibility  lodged  somewhere  when  you  have 
to  manage  390  men  on  either  side  of  the  House 
of  Representatives.  [Applause.] 

My  friends,  I  have  to  go.  I  would  be  delighted 
to  stay,  just  to  see  what  can  be  said  of  a  man  in 
his  own  presence.  This  is  a  great  and  historic 
dinner,  and  I  am  glad  to  have  had  an  opportunity 
to  be  here,  for  many  reasons.  The  chief  one  is 
to  testify  to  my  profound  admiration  for  one  of 
the  greatest  characters  in  American  political  life, 
and  for  a  man  to  whom  the  people  of  this  country 
are  indebted  in  a  way  which  they  now  but  little 
realize.  But  when  he  shall  have  passed  away, 
the  merit  of  his  work  will  show  itself  to  them 
and  to  historians  generally.  [Applause.]  He 
says  he  is  going  away  and  not  coming  back.  I 
hope  that  is  not  true,  and  I  do  not  believe  it  is 
true.  I  think  that  when  he  goes  out  to  that  dis- 
trict and  walks  up  and  down  Vermillion  County, 
and  finds  how  many  people  are  sorry  they  did  not 
vote  for  him  at  this  last  election,  the  old  war- 

57 


horse  will  again  scent  the  battle  from  afar,  and 
he  will  come  here  again  to  be  with  those  who  are 
here,  to  show  them  again  the  old  traditions  of 
the  Republican  Party  when  it  was  in  power  and 
in  usefulness.  [Applause.] 

I  thank  you  for  listening  to  me,  and  I  close 
with  the  sentiment,  "God  bless  that  patriotic 
American,  Uncle  Joe  Cannon."  [Applause.] 

Those  present  then  gave  three  cheers  for  the 
President  of  the  United  States. 


The  Toastmaster.  No  dinner  to  Uncle  Joe 
would  be  complete  without  the  Watermelon 
Song,  and  I  have  no  doubt  he  would  like  to  sing 
it  to  you  himself ;  but  tonight  he  is  the  guest  and 
we'll  call  on  his  most  distinguished  rival  and  the 
man  who  has  made  that  old  song  famous  through- 
out the  United  States,  Major  Stofer. 


^"^a 


Do  Watermilion  Hangin'  On  De  Vine. 

Oh,  de  dew  it  am  a  fallin',  dat  'milion's  gwineter  cool, 

An'  soon  it  will  be  very,  very  fine; 
But,  bless  yo'  soul,  my  honey,  dis  darkey  ain'  no  fool 

To  leave  it  dar  a  hangin'  on  de  vine. 

CHORUS  : 
Oh,  de  ham  bone  am  good,  de  bacon  am  sweet, 

'Possum  meat  am  very,  very  fine; 
But  gimme,  oh  gimme,  oh  how  I  wish  you  would, 

Dat  watermilion  hangin'  on  de  vine. 

See  dat  watermilion  a  peepin'  froo  de  fence, 

How  I  wish  dat  'milion  it  was  mine; 
White  fokes  ain'  got  one  blessed  bit  o'  sense 

To  leave  it  dar  a  hangin'  on  de  vine. 

You  may  talk  about  yo'  peaches,  yo'  apples  an*  yo'  p'ars — 

Talk  about  yo'  'simmons  on  de  tree; 
But  bless  yo'  soul,  my  honey,  of  all  de  fruit  dat  grows, 

De  watermilion  am  de  food  for  me. 

Oh,  de  'possum  an'  de  tater  am  mighty  good  to  eat — 

Some  darkeys  think  dar's  livin'  in  a  ham; 
But  watermilion's  eatin'  dat  nothin'  else  kin  beat, 

For  it's  loaded  full  of  "Glory  to  de  Lam'." 

Some  day  we's  gwine  to  Heaven  whar  de  good  ole  darkeys  go, 

An'  w'ar  a  crown  a  shinin'  like  a  star ; 
Den  settin'  by  de  river  we  kin  eat  forever  mo', 

Watermilions  wid  de  angels  over  dar. 


HON.  OSCAR  W.  UNDERWOOD 


Mr.  Underwood,  of  Alabama 

Toastmaster  Moore.  Upon  one  brilliant 
young  man  of  this  Nation  has  been  placed  a  mo- 
mentous responsibility.  It  is  his  duty,  in  order 
that  the  great  national  administration  may  be 
justified,  to  see  to  it  that  all  prices  shall  be  low- 
ered and  all  wages  shall  be  raised.  [Laughter.] 
He  has  the  sympathy  of  Republicans  and  Demo- 
crats alike.  There  is  a  heartiness  in  the  wish  for 
the  success  of  Oscar  W.  Underwood,  of  Ala- 
bama. [Prolonged  applause.] 


R.  UNDERWOOD.  Mr.  Chairman, 
Mr.  Toastmaster,  Uncle  Joe,  and  my 
fellow  guests,  I  shall  not  allow  our 
toastmaster  to  tempt  me  to  wade  in  stormy 
waters.  [Laughter.]  The  dove  of  peace  is  sail- 
ing over  the  political  lines  tonight,  and  I  am  re- 
minded by  that  fact  that  it  was  the  real  soldiers, 
not  the  coffee  coolers  or  deserters,  who  swapped 
their  tobacco  across  the  lines  in  times  of  real  war- 
fare. [Applause.]  Our  guest  of  honor  has  for 
40  years  been  a  real  political  warrior,  and  he  has 
sometimes  swapped  tobacco  across  the  line. 
[Applause.] 

I  am  not  going  to  attempt  to  make  a  speech 
tonight,  but  I  am  going  to  tell  a  story  of  Uncle 

61 


Joe,  which  I  have  no  doubt  he  has  forgotten, 
though  I  have  not,  because  in  those  days  he  was 
a  commander  in  the  political  lines  and  I  was  only 
a  private  in  the  rear  ranks.  An  appropriation 
was  needed  to  entertain  distinguished  guests. 
We  lived  at  the  same  hotel  together,  and  al- 
though we  differed  in  politics  greatly,  Uncle  Joe 
and  I  had  been  close  friends  for  many  years. 
When  this  subject  of  a  needful  appropriation 
was  becoming  urgent,  Uncle  Joe  one  night  in- 
vited me  to  take  a  stroll.  In  those  days  there 
were  no  houses  out  at  Sheridan  Circle ;  there  was 
nothing  there  but  a  circle.  This  was  a  cold, 
moonlight  night,  and  we  walked  out  to  Sheridan 
Circle,  and  then  Uncle  Joe  invited  me  to  take  a 
seat  on  the  curbing,  and  we  got  down  to  busi- 
ness. He  said,  "My  boy,  you  have  heard  of  the 
trouble  we  have  been  having  over  the  proper  en- 
tertainment of  distinguished  visitors.  I  have 
been  thinking  this  thing  over,  and  tomorrow 
afternoon,  when  'most  everybody  has  gone  home 
[laughter],  and  the  House  is  thin,  if  I  get  up  and 
ask  unanimous  consent  that  an  appropriation 
might  pass  for  the  purpose  of  entertaining  these 
distinguished  guests,  and  you  vigorously  oppose 
it  at  first  and  then  allow  me  to  convince  you,  we 
might  get  it  through.  [Laughter.]  So  Uncle  Joe 
and  I  swapped  tobacco  in  that  case.  [Applause.] 
Now,  all  I  have  to  say  is  this:  We  have  had 
great  men  in  Congress,  and  Uncle  Joe  is  one  of 

62 


the  greatest.  He  has  never  swapped  tobacco 
across  the  line  for  his  own  benefit.  [Applause.] 
He  has  always  been  willing  to  swap  tobacco 
across  the  line  for  the  glory  and  the  honor  of 
our  great  Republic,  and  he  has  left  an  example 
that  we  may  all  follow.  [Applause.]  It  gives 
me  sincere  pleasure  to  be  here  tonight  and  do 
honor  to  him,  one  of  the  great  men  who  will  live 
in  the  history  of  our  country.  [Applause.] 


SENATOR  OLLIE  M.  JAMES 


Senator-Elect  Ollie  M.  James 

Toastmaster  Moore.  We  are  again  on  our 
native  heath,  back  to  the  field  of  oratory.  Men 
may  preside  over  conventions  which  nominate  a 
candidate  for  the  Presidency  who  is  not  elected, 
and  men  may  also  preside  over  a  convention  at 
Baltimore  which  nominates  a  President  who  is 
elected,  and  it  is  entirely  within  their  power  and 
their  province  on  an  occasion  like  this  to  say  just 
who  that  President  will  appoint  to  his  Cabinet. 
This  duty  has  been  assigned  to  the  gentleman 
from  Kentucky,  who  has  recently  been  sent  to 
the  Senate — Mr.  Ollie  M.  James.  [Applause.] 

Mr.  Chairman,  Mr.  Toast- 
master,  fellow  hosts,  and  our  distin- 
guished guest,  Uncle  Joe,  I,  too,  have 
seen  Uncle  Joe  swap  "terbacker"  across  the  line, 
and  I  never  saw  him  cheated  yet.  [Laughter.] 
He  generally  got  some  to  boot.  [Laughter.] 

I  am  happy  to  join  with  the  members  of  all  the 
parties  in  paying  tribute  to  our  distinguished 
guest  of  honor,  the  Hon.  Joseph  G.  Cannon,  of 
Illinois.  Whatever  else  may  be  said  of  him,  I  can 
say  of  him  that  I  have  always  liked  him  person- 
ally, because  he  never  undertook  to  galvanize  a 
Democratic  principle  into  a  Republican  slogan. 

65 


After  40  years  of  service  in  the  Congress  of  the 
United  States,  he  may  go  back  to  the  people 
who  have  honored  him,  a  Republican  of  Repub- 
licans [applause] ;  one  whose  name  and  charac- 
ter and  service  take  us  back  to  the  age  when 
Garfield  and  Conkling  and  Elaine  proclaimed  the 
principles  of  their  party;  one  who  never  called 
for  an  adjective  to  add  to,  or  an  adverb  to  mod- 
ify, the  glory  of  his  plain  Republicanism.  [Ap- 
plause.] 

And  now,  after  all  these  years  of  public  serv- 
ice, he  returns  to  a  people  whom  he  has  repre- 
sented here  in  the  faith  in  which  they  believed, 
and  having  walked  in  that  light  spot  where 
greatness  treads  for  20  terms  in  Congress  he  may 
say  to  them  that  not  a  flaw  can  be  picked  in  it 
from  the  standpoint  of  personal  honor  and  offi- 
cial integrity,  and  it  beams  with  the  unspotted 
radiance  of  a  summer's  evening  star.  [Ap- 
plause.] 

And  so,  Republicans,  I  can  say  to  you  that  the 
Democrats  can  join  with  you  in  paying  tribute 
to  one  whose  earnestness  in  a  conviction,  though 
we  differ  from  him,  makes  him  in  our  eyes  a  pa- 
triot, a  splendid,  a  real,  a  genuine  American. 
[Applause.] 


66 


SENATOR  JOHN  SHARP  WILLIAMS 


Senator  John  Sharp  Williams 

Toastmaster  Moore.  I  may  be  calling  him 
out  of  his  rank.  He  should  have  been  called 
upon  earlier.  But  he  was  once  a  member  of  the 
House  of  Representatives,  and  therefore  he 
stands  with  the  majority  of  us  tonight.  He  was 
the  leader  of  his  party  in  the  House,  a  man 
whose  argument  was  as  keen  as  a  rapier,  and 
who  found  in  the  distinguished  guest  of  the 
evening  "a  foeman  worthy  of  his  steel.'* — Sena- 
tor John  Sharp  Williams,  of  Mississippi.  [Ap- 
plause.] 

ENATOR  WILLIAMS.  Mr.  Chair- 
man, Mr.  Toastmaster,  and  gentlemen, 
an  unreconstructed  Bourbon  Missis- 
sippi Democrat,  who  loved  the  very  ground  that 
I  walked  upon,  once  said  to  me,  "John,  there  is 
just  one  thing  about  your  conduct  in  Washington 
that  I  do  not  understand.  How  is  it  that  you  and 
old  Joe  Cannon  are  so  fond  of  each  other?" 

I  said,  "My  dear  boy,  Uncle  Joe  and  I  have 
been  trying  for  a  long  time  to  explain  that  to  our 
respective  constituencies,  and  I  imagine  that  we 
will  spend  the  balance  of  our  lives  trying  to  ex- 
plain it,  and  if  the  theory  of  the  immortality  of 

67 


souls  be  correct  I  imagine  we  will  be  bothered 
with  it  a  good  deal  of  the  time  throughout  eter- 
nity." 

We  resemble  one  another  in  this  respect,  at 
any  rate,  and  I  hope  it  is  not  a  bad  trait,  although 
it  is  not  a  heroic  one :  We  separate  ourselves  to 
a  large  extent  from  the  criticism  of  the  world  by 
a  veil  of  real  or  artificial  humor.  So  far  has  it 
gone  that  I  do  not  remember  any  time  when  we 
have  met  in  public  when  we  threw  down  the 
veil,  but  I  believe  tonight  I  will  throw  it  down. 

I  first  began  to  know  Uncle  Joe  when  he  was 
chairman  of  the  Appropriations  Committee  of 
the  House  of  Representatives.  It  was  not  long 
before  I  learned  that  he  had  the  longest  nose  for 
a  fraud  or  a  job  of  any  man  in  the  House  of  Rep- 
resentatives. [Applause.]  It  was  not  long  be- 
fore I  acquired  the  habit  of  crossing  the  aisle  and 
saying,  "What  about  this?"  when  I  wanted  to 
know  about  some  new  thing  on  an  appropriation 
bill,  and  he  would  say,  "Sharp,  there  is  a  job  in 
that."  "That  is  something  to  take  care  of  lame 
ducks,"  or  "There  is  something  about  it  that  I 
don't  like." 

I  would  then  cross  the  aisle  back  to  the  Demo- 
cratic side  with  perfect  confidence,  array  what 
few  young  Members  I  could  against  the  propo- 
sition, and  support  the  Republican  Committee 
on  Appropriations  with  the  word  of  its  chairman 
behind  it.  [Applause.] 

68 


They  were  talking  tonight  about  his  having 
his  name  affixed  to  no  great  public  measure.  As 
far  as  I  know,  Daniel  Webster  had  his  name  af- 
fixed to  none.  As  far  as  I  know,  a  great  many 
of  the  leading  men  of  the  United  States,  who 
cut  a  chief  figure  in  their  day,  had  their  names 
affixed  to  none.  There  are  two  duties  for  a  Rep- 
resentative or  Senator.  One  is  affirmative;  the 
other  is  negative,  and  of  the  two,  the  negative 
duty  is  the  greater.  It  is  very  easy  to  start 
things,  with  some  doubt  as  to  where  they  will 
end.  It  is  a  very  easy  thing  to  call  yourself  a 
constructive  statesman,  and  leave  to  some  other 
statesmen  later  on  the  task  of  unconstructing  or 
reconstructing  what  you  have  done.  But  it  re- 
quires a  good  deal  of  courage  to  stem  a  tide,  to 
breast  a  current,  to  detect  a  fraud  and  stop  it. 

Now,  I  did  not  attempt  to  explain  it  to  my 
Mississippi  constituent,  but  I  believe  that  that 
was  when  I  first  began  to  trust  Uncle  Joe.  The 
trust  had  not  lasted  long  before  I  began  to  love 
him  in  addition  to  trusting  him.  [Applause.] 

There  is  an  old  German  song  that  begins: 
Es  zogen  drei  Burschen  wohl  uber  den  Rhein. 

And  when  they  got  over  the  Rhine,  they  found 
that  the  girl  of  the  inn  was  dead  and  lying  upon 
her  bier.    One  of  them  said: 
I  have  loved  thee  well. 

Another  said: 

Wert  thou  alive  I  would  love  thee  yet. 

69 


The  third  responded: 

Dich  habe  Ich  geliebt, 

Dich  liebe  Ich  noch  Heut' ; 

Und  werde  dich  lieben  auf  Ewigkeit. 

I  loved  thee  yesterday ;  I  love  thee  still  today ; 
and  I  shall  love  thee  throughout  eternity.  [Ap- 
plause.] 

There  are  many  who  may  say  of  Uncle  Joe, 
"I  loved  him  when  he  could  dispense  committee 
assignments."  There  are  some  of  you  who  can 
say,  "I  would  love  him  yet  if  he  were  Speaker." 
But  I  undertake  to  say,  "I  loved  him  yesterday, 
I  love  him  today,  and  I  shall  love  him  throughout 
all  time."  [Applause.] 

What  is  it  that  ties  one  man's  soul  to  another? 
It  is  hard  to  answer.  I  do  not  know.  Is  it  poli- 
tics? Why,  I  am  a  Bourbon  Democrat.  Uncle 
Joe  is  a  standpatter  of  the  nineteenth  century 
[laughter],  and  we  are  about  beginning  the  sec- 
ond decade  of  the  twentieth  century,  so  that  that 
can  not  account  for  it.  Is  it  similarity  of  reli- 
gion? Why  Uncle  Joe  is  a  recalcitrant  Quaker, 
and  I  am  a  High  Church  Episcopalian — so  high 
that  you  can  not  reach  me  with  a  persimmon 
pole  except  upon  a  fast  day.  [Laughter.]  Is  it 
metaphysics?  Is  it  a  similarity  of  belief  there? 
I  believe  in  innate  ideas.  I  believe  that  a  man 
is  born  with  a  moral  sense  as  much  as  with  two 
arms  and  two  legs,  and  that  he  can  not  get  over 
it.  I  believe  that  a  man's  heredity  controls  it. 

70 


Uncle  Joe  seems  to  believe  that  every  child  is 
born  with  a  mind  like  a  tablet  of  wax,  upon 
which  he  can  write  everything,  and  provided  he 
has  the  same  mother  and  the  same  training,  re- 
gardless of  the  race  of  his  father,  he  will  come 
out  with  equal  achievement  to  that  of  another  at 
the  end1;  in  all  of  which  I  do  not  believe.  Is  it  an 
identity  of  geography?  I  imagine  not.  I  come 
from  where  the  Confederate  jessamine  grows, 
and  Uncle  Joe  comes  from  where  no  flower  at- 
tains to  full  fruition  except  corn  tassles;  so  that 
that  can  not  have  much  to  do  with  it.  [Laugh- 
ter.] 

I  do  not  know  what  it  is,  unless  it  be  that  one 
honest  man,  maybe  not  over  serious,  finds  in  an- 
other man  an  honest  and  sincere  and  brave  pur- 
pose. In  fact,  I  do  not  know  that  there  is  any 
other  enduring  basis  of  friendship  than  that.  It 
leads  to  mutual  trust,  to  mutual  confidence,  and 
at  the  base  of  all  mutual  affection  must  be  mu- 
tual trust  and  confidence.  If  that  be  not  the  real 
explanation  it  would  be  hard  for  me  to  tell  what 
it  is. 

My  patron  saint,  old  Thomas  Jefferson,  said 
that  men  were  responsible  for  the  righteousness 
and  not  for  the  rightfulness  of  their  opinions.  In 
other  words,  a  man  is  responsible  for  advocating 
that  which  he  believes  to  be  right  and  for  oppos- 
ing that  which  he  believes  to  be  wrong.  He  is 
not  responsible  for  error  of  opinion,  thank  God, 

71 


because  if  he  were  we  would  be  responsible  for 
very  much  more  than  we  could  stand  sponsors 
for.  And  so  it  happens  that  men  who  meet  with 
one  another  and  recognize  this  common  trait  of 
righteousness  of  conviction,  standing  by  their 
conviction  with  courage,  advocating  nothing 
which  in  their  opinion  is  wrong  because  it  is  pop- 
ular and  opposing  nothing  which  in  their  opinion 
is  right  because  it  is  unpopular,  will  love  one  an- 
other. And  that  possibly  may  be  the  answer  to 
the  question  which  my  Mississippi  Democratic 
friend  asked  me  and  which  I  did  not  choose  to 
answer  at  that  particular  time.  [Prolonged  ap- 
plause.] 


"UNCLE  JOE" 


Featured  in  Cartoon  and  Song 

I  HE  TO  ASTM  ASTER.  Even  while  we 
are  eating,  gentlemen,  we  shall  con- 
tinue. Go  on  and  enjoy  yourselves. 
Meanwhile  that  famous  cartoonist  of  the  New 
York  World,  Mr.  McCauley,  and  the  equally 
famous  Berryman,  our  popular  cartoonist  of 
Washington  [applause],  will  undertake  to  keep 
your  minds  busy.  They  will  give  pictorial  im- 
pressions of  Mr.  Cannon  from  either  end  of  the 
hall. 

[After  Messrs.  Berryman  and  McCauley  had 
amused  the  audience  with  their  rapidly  drawn 
cartoons  the  toastmaster  continued:] 

We  have  shown  you  that  even  in  the  Senate 
and  House  of  Representatives,  unofficially  met, 
there  may  be  two  rings  to  a  circus,  and  that  both 
ends  may  be  entertained  at  the  same  time.  We 
now  propose,  through  Mr.  John  Corwin,  of  The 
Gridiron  Club,  to  present  a  real  circus.  While 
Mr.  Corwin  is  preparing  to  present  his  "circus," 
I  will  introduce  our  old  friend,  the  former  chair- 
man of  the  Appropriations  Committee,  Hon. 
James  A.  Tawney,  of  Minnesota,  for  a  song : 

Mr.  Tawney  led  in  singing  "Dear  Old  Uncle 
Joe,"  an  improvisation  of  "It  Was  My  Last 
Cigar." 

73 


Uncle    Joe 

Am :  "Old  Black  Joe." 
Gone  are  the  days  when  my  gavel 

used  to  fall ; 
Gone  most  the  boys  who  rallied 

to  my  call; 
Gone,  nearly  all,  but  I'm  still 

with  the  show, 
I  hear  their  stand  pat  voices  calling 

Un-cle  Joe. 

CHORUS  : 

Not  coming,  still  humming, 
For  me  they  are  too  slow, 
But  still  I  love  to  hear  them  call  me, 
Un-cle  Joe. 

Gone  are  the  days  when  we  used 

to  fight  like  hell, 
Gone  most  the  Reps  and  Dems 

who  used  to  tell 
What  each  one  thought  of  the 

other — let  that  go, 
For  now  to  both  I  love  to  think 

I'm  Un-cle  Joe. 

CHORUS  : 

Still  praying,  I'm  staying 
In  life's  jack-pot,  there's  my  dough, 
And  no  four-flush  can  win  that  stake  from 
Un-cle  Joe. 

Near  is  the  time  when  to  the 

House  I'll  say : 
Good  bye  old  Pals,  I  sure 

have  had  my  day; 
May  you  all  duck  the  guy 

who  hands  out  woe, 
And  live  and  stay  there  just  as  long  as 

Un-cle  Joe. 

CHORUS  : 
God  bless  you,  God  bless  you, 

as  through  life's  work  you  go, 
And  in  the  end  may  all  join  Him 

With   Un-cle  Joe. 


HON.  HILLARY  A.  HERBERT 


Gen.  Hillary  A.  Herbert 

Toastmaster  Moore.  Two  gentlemen  who 
are  not  upon  the  program  ought  to  be  heard  even 
though  the  hour  is  late ;  one  of  them  is  that  dis- 
tinguished man  who  honored  his  country  as  Sec- 
retary of  the  Navy  under  Grover  Cleveland,  Gen. 
Hillary  A.  Herbert.  Listen  to  him.  [Applause.] 

R.  HERBERT.  Mr.  Chairman,  Mr. 
Toastmaster,  and  gentlemen,  when  I 
first  knew  the  honored  guest  of  this 
evening  I  was  in  the  Forty-fifth  Congress,  over  a 
third  of  a  century  ago.  At  that  time,  to  use  a 
phrase  which  we  are  told  this  evening  is  to  go 
sounding  down  the  ages,  "In  the  last  analysis," 
Joe  Cannon  was  just  the  same  as  he  is  today. 
[Applause.] 

We  served  together  for  eight  Congresses,  and 
during  all  that  time  each  Congress  was  very 
much  of  the  same  opinion  as  that  which  I  sup- 
pose the  present  Congress  entertains  about  it- 
self. We  were  optimistic  about  the  future  of  our 
country,  as  Senator  Root  has  been  this  evening; 
we  were  in,  the  country  was  safe,  the  people 
were  showing  their  capacity  for  self-government 
by  the  wisdom  with  which  they  had  chosen  their 

75 


Representatives.  But  it  is  late  and  I  will  not 
detain  you. 

When  I  left  Congress  20  years  ago  this  month 
Joe  Cannon  was  still  there,  and  still  the  same 
as  he  is  todlay,  except  in  one  respect :  He  was  not 
my  "Uncle."  I  was  older  than  he  was.  But  to- 
night he  is  the  Uncle  of  all  of  us.  Five  hundred 
of  his  nephews  have  come  here  this  evening  to 
do  him  honor  [applause],  and  I  understand  that 
3,000  more  tried  to  get  in,  but  found  there  was 
not  room. 

Uncle  Joe  Cannon,  in  my  opinion,  in  his  poli- 
tics was  always  dead  wrong,  but  in  the  tenacity 
with  which  he  held  his  views,  the  views  that  he 
entertained,  and  the  courage  with  which  he 
fought  for  them,  he  was  always  dead  right. 
[Applause.]  He  always  fought  fair;  he  never 
hit  below  the  belt;  and  that  is  the  reason  why 
he  has  won  out.  In  addition  to  all  that,  he  is  the 
prince  of  good  fellows,  and  as  such  we  have  come 
here  tonight  to  bid  him  God  speed  in  the  future. 
[Applause.] 

Calls  for  "Cannon!  Cannon!"  and  "Uncle 
Joe!" 


Presentation  of  a  Marble  Bust 

Toastmaster  Moore.  The  enthusiasm  of 
youth,  the  toastmaster  understands  is  breaking 
out  toward  the  heel  of  the  evening;  but  the  toast- 
master  is  still  in  control,  and  will  close  the  ex- 
ercises promptly  at  12  o'clock,  as  indicated. 

And  now,  while  we  forego  the  pleasure  of 
listening  to  such  distinguished  speakers  as  the 
eloquent  former  Senator  from  Texas,  Mr. 
Bailey,  who  is  here,  and  Gen.  Grosvenor,  who 
has  come  all  the  way  from  Ohio  [cries  of  "Bai- 
ley! Bailey!"],  Sereno  E.  Payne,  John  Dalzell, 
Bourke  Cockran  and  many  other  distinguished 
men,  who,  by  reason  of  your  impetuosity  and 
petulance  [laughter]  at  this  hour  [cries  of  Bai- 
ley! Bailey!"]  we  may  not  call  upon — it  is  your 
fault  and  not  that  of  the  toastmaster — we  shall 
present  for  a  special  touch  to  the  speeches  of 
this  historic  evening,  Dr.  Richard  Bartholdt, 
of  Missouri. 

R.  BARTHOLDT.  Mr.  Chairman,  Mr. 
Toastmaster,  and  gentlemen,  I  am 
charged  with  the  performance  of  a 
duty  most  pleasant,  as  well  as  most  difficult; 
pleasant  because  the  task  of  giving  always 
touches  the  tender  chords  in  the  hearts  of  both 


77 


the  donor  and  the  recipient,  and  difficult  because 
language  is  so  poor  to  express  adequately  the  in- 
tensity of  feeling  which  inspires  this  task. 

In  his  maiden  speech  in  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives on  the  1 8th  of  February,  1872,  the 
Hon.  Joseph  G.  Cannon,  then  a  young  man  of 
36  years,  spoke  these  memorable  words: 

No  man  is  a  proper  person  to  represent  the 
people  unless  he  has  the  honesty  and  the  back- 
bone to  stand  and  do  the  best  he  can,  and  do  what 
is  right  and  what  is  for  the  interests  of  his  people, 
without  reference  to  what  anybody  may  say  of 
him  or  what  the  action  of  the  press  may  be  in  the 
premises. 

Uncle  Joe — if  we  loved  him  less  we  would  be 
less  familiar — has  made  a  thousand  speeches 
since  that  time.  By  his  distinguished  services 
he  has  made  the  whole  country  his  debtor,  and 
he  has  erected  monuments  in  the  hearts  of  his 
countrymen.  Coming  here  40  years  ago,  with 
oats  in  his  pocket,  as  was  said  in  that  debate,  he 
now  is  about  to  return  home,  with  a  rich  harvest 
of  honorable  achievements,  to  his  constituents, 
who  have  honored  him  for  40  years.  But  no 
nobler  sentiment,  no  greater  truth  has  ever  been 
uttered  by  man  than  were  these  simple  words 
which  flowed  like  pure  gold  from  a  pure  soul. 
And  what  is  more,  he  has  lived  up  to  them  him- 
self, and  those  of  us  who  know  him  best  know 


78 


HON.  RICHARD  BARTHOLDT 


that  the  beautiful  lesson  contained  in  those 
words  has  characterized  his  own  great  congres- 
sional career  from  beginning  to  end. 

For  the  guidance  of  the  Representatives  of  the 
people  that  epigram  should  be  chiseled  in  stone 
above  the  portals  of  the  House  of  Representa- 
tives. But  as  that  can  not  be  done,  we  have  de- 
vised another  plan  in  order  to  be  daily  reminded 
of  it.  One  hundred  friends  of  the  great  com- 
moner, Members  of  the  House  and  Senate,  have 
banded  together  to  dedicate  to  him,  as  a  token 
of  their  esteem  and  love,  a  bust — a  bust  of  him- 
self. He  wishes  in  turn  to  donate  the  bust  to  the 
House  of  Representatives.  I  ask  you,  could 
there  be  a  more  appropriate  place  to  put  that 
bust  than  in  the  House  Office  Building,  which  in 
itself  is  a  monument  to  the  former  Speaker,  be- 
cause he  conceived  the  idea  of  that  great  build- 
ing and  carried  out  the  plans  as  the  chairman  of 
the  commission  appointed  for  that  purpose.  If 
this  distinguished  audience  will  say  "Aye"  to 
this  proposition  it  will  be  done,  because,  although 
I  can  not  count  now  a  la  Tom  Reed,  because  of 
the  darkness,  I  think  a  quorum  is  present. 
[Cries  of  "Aye!  Aye!"] 

Mr.  Toastmaster  and  Mr.  Cannon,  I  beg  one 
more  minute  for  the  purpose  of  presenting  to  you 
the  creator  of  this  masterpiece  of  art,  the  man 
whom  St.  Gaudens  selected  as  the  author  of  the 
Von  Steuben  monument,  and  who  has,  after 


79 


fierce  competition,  just  carried  off  the  prize  for 
the  great  Germantown  monument — Mr.  Albert 
Jaegers.  I  will  ask  him  to  rise. 

Mr.  Jaegers  was  greeted  with  great  applause. 


HON.  JOSEPH  G.  CANNON 
OF  ILLINOIS 


Speech  of  Mr.  Gannon 

Toastmaster  Moore.  Friends  of  Uncle  Joe, 
we  have  reached  the  climax.  Will  you  take 
your  handkerchiefs  or  your  napkins  and  salute 
the  honored  guest  of  the  evening?  Mr.  Cannon 
will  now  say  a  few  words.  [Cheers  and  waving 
of  napkins.] 


R.  CANNON.  Mr.  Chairman,  Mr. 
Toastmaster,  and  gentlemen,  at  this 
late  hour  of  the  night  I  can  only  say  to 
you  in  concluding,  as  I  apprehend,  the  exercises 
of  the  evening,  that  from  my  heart  I  thank  you. 
I  would  be  less  than  human  if  I  failed  to  appre- 
ciate to  the  utmost  extent  the  generous  compli- 
ment you  pay  me  by  gathering  here  tonight. 
The  words  of  confidence  and  good  will  which 
have  fallen  from  the  lips  of  the  distinguished  gen- 
tlemen who  have  spoken,  beginning  with  the 
honored  President  of  the  United  States  and 
joined  in  by  my  colleagues  of  the  House  and 
Senate,  have  quite  overcome  me  and  almost 
bereft  me  of  the  power  of  speech.  Service  in  the 
Congress  of  the  United  States  demands  labor  and 
toil ;  sometimes  it  involves  misrepresentation  and 

81 


abuse ;  now  and  then  it  brings,  mayhap,  a  heart- 
ache or  the  suggestion  of  pain;  but  if  all  these 
were  multiplied  a  thousandfold  there  would  still 
be  balm  for  every  injury  and  consolation  for  every 
regret  in  the  friendships  which  are  formed  be- 
tween virile  men,  and  so  long  as  I  live,  no  matter 
what  may  come  to  pass,  whether  fortune  smiles 
or  frowns,  nothing  can  rob  me  of  the  priceless 
memory  of  the  friends  I  have  met  and  known  and 
loved  during  a  service  of  almost  40  years  in  the 
House  of  Representatives. 

It  was  a  saying  of  Cicero  that  it  is  impossible 
for  men  in  public  life  to  be  friends,  because  of 
their  jealousies  and  contentions.  However  true 
that  may  have  been  in  the  days  when  Rome  was 
mistress  of  the  world  and  Cicero  was  her  great- 
est orator,  it  is  not  true  in  the  United  States  of 
America  today.  In  our  day  and  age  there  need 
be  no  further  refutation  of  the  saying  attributed 
to  Cicero  than  the  magnificent  assemblage  here 
tonight. 

We  divide  into  party  organizations  having  dif- 
ferent economic  policies,  striving  from  time  to 
time  for  popular  approval;  but,  thank  God,  the 
men  who  wage  the  great  political  battles  of  our 
country  and  seek  the  verdict  of  the  majority  have 
but  one  hope,  one  aspiration,  one  desire,  and  that 
is  to  serve  the  great  Republic.  [Applause.]  As 
I  look  into  the  eyes  of  my  honored  friend  and 
political  opponent,  Senator  Williams,  of  Missis- 

82 


sippi,  and  as  he  looks  into  my  eyes,  we  acknowl- 
edge that  from  the  attrition  of  virile  minds,  each 
upholding  what  he  believes  to  be  right,  accord- 
ing as  it  is  given  him  to  see  the  light,  and  from 
the  clash  of  contending  forces,  the  best  results 
for  all  the  people  are  obtained.  [Applause.] 
One  or  the  other  of  us  is  mistaken  as  to  economic 
policies,  but  we  are  a  unit  in  loyalty  to  the  flag 
and  in  seeking  the  greatest  good  for  the  greatest 
number.  When  the  majority  record  their  judg- 
ment we  bow  to  their  will,  whether  they  be  Re- 
publican or  Democratic,  and  leave  the  fleeting 
years  to  demonstrate  the  wisdom  or  unwisdom 
of  the  policies  written  on  the  statute  books,  the 
minority  criticizing,  the  majority  upholding.  If, 
perchance,  mistakes  are  made,  as  the  pendulum 
swings  back  and  forth  and  as  men  come  and  go, 
we  may  safely  count,  in  spite  of  the  play  of  the 
demagogue  masquerading  in  the  robes  of  the 
plain  people,  upon  the  sound  judgment,  the  pa- 
triotic impulses,  and  the  wisdom  of  American 
manhood  to  correct  the  errors  and  right  the 
wrongs  of  government.  We  may  strut  and  fret 
as  real  or  imaginary  leaders  of  public  opinion, 
but,  after  all,  the  silent  ballot  is  the  guiding,  di- 
recting force. 

I  am  not  here  to  make  a  partisan  speech.  I  am 
a  partisan,  as  you,  Senator  Williams,  are  a 
partisan. 

Senator  Williams.     Not  tonight. 

83 


Mr.  Cannon.  Oh,  no;  not  tonight;  but  we 
have  contested  in  the  presence  of  a  hundred  mil- 
lion people,  you  believing  honestly  that  the  pol- 
icies advocated  by  you  were  for  the  best  inter- 
ests of  all  the  people,  and  I  believing  that  the 
policies  advocated  by  me  were  for  their  best  in- 
terests, and  we  have  been  generous  contestants. 
[Applause.] 

Looking  in  your  faces,  my  friends,  and  Mem- 
bers of  the  House  and  Senate,  I  accord  to  you 
who  do  not  agree  with  me  politically  the  same 
loyalty  to  the  great  Republic  that  I  claim  for  my- 
self. As  manly  men  we  make  our  contests  as 
God  gives  us  to  see  the  right,  and  we  are  in- 
dorsed or  fail  of  indorsement  from  time  to  time, 
as  the  case  may  be.  The  new  generation  comes, 
and  if  they  do  not  learn  through  the  brain  they 
will  learn  through  the  stomach,  or  through  both 
brain  and  stomach,  and  ail  things  will  end  well. 
Thank  God,  I  have  been  an  optimist  all  my  life, 
and  I  shall  remain  an  optimist  to  the  end.  [Ap- 
plause.] 

My  friend  and  colleague  of  many  years,  Dr. 
Bartholdt,  has  called  your  attention  to  a  bust 
which,  without  my  knowledge,  was  ordered  from 
the  hands  of  an  eminent  artist,  the  one  who  ex* 
ecuted  the  statue  of  Von  Steuben,  his  design  be- 
ing chosen  above  all  others.  I  do  not  know,  fur- 
ther than  Dr.  Bartholdt  has  intimated,  who  pro- 
cured the  bust;  nor  do  I  know  as  to  its  merits, 

84 


for  I  have  not  heretofore  seen  it  as  a  finished 
work,  but  I  do  know  that  the  sculptor  has  re- 
ceived in  the  world  of  art  many  indorsements. 

The  gentleman  from  Missouri,  my  friend  and 
your  friend,  has  suggested  that  perchance  it 
ought  to  rest  in  the  House  Office  Building.  I  do 
not  know  what  may  be  the  will  of  the  House 
touching  the  suggestion.  I  know,  however,  that 
some  years  ago,  in  the  performance  of  my  duty 
as  a  Member  of  the  House  of  Representatives, 
being  in  charge  of  the  sundry  civil  appropriation 
bill,  I  asked,  for  reasons  assigned — which  proba- 
bly embraced  no  more  than  two  or  three  short 
sentences — that  the  construction  of  the  building 
be  authorized.  The  House  and  the  Senate 
agreed.  The  House  Office  Building  was  begun, 
followed  shortly  by  the  Senate  Office  Building. 
I  leave  the  matter  in  your  hands. 

My  friends,  I  am  an  old  man.  [Cries  of  "No, 
no !"]  Measured  by  years  I  am  old.  I  am  about 
to  retire  from  public  life.  [Cries  of  "No,  no!"] 
I  will  soon  be  77  years  old.  My  face  is  turned 
toward  the  setting  sun.  But  when  the  sun  dis- 
appears below  the  western  horizon  I  shall  go 
secure  in  the  feeling  that,  whatever  party  may 
from  time  to  time  be  chargeable  with  the  respon- 
sibilities of  government,  if  mistakes  are  made  an 
enlightened  public  sentiment  will  correct  them. 
Again  I  thank  you,  one  and  all.  [Prolonged  ap- 
plause.] 

85 


OU  may  break,  you  may  shatter, 

The  rules  if  you  will, 
But  the  Cannon  aroma 
Will  hang  to  them  still. 


"Speed  the  Parting  Guest" 


OASTMASTER  MOORE.  Gentlemen, 
in  concluding  the  festivities  of  the  even- 
ing, let  us  wish  our  honored  guest  God- 
speed and  perennial  youth.  In  whatever  direc- 
tion his  future  path  may  lie — whether  to  return, 
as  we  doubt  not  he  will,  in  response  to  popular 
summons,  to  his  invaluable  service  for  the  Na- 
tion, or  of  his  own  choice  to  round  out  his  great 
career  in  the  repose  of  private  life — let  our  hearts 
go  with  him.  Let  us  wish  him  in  the  years  to 
come  a  continued  possession  of  all  he  now  has 
of— 

That  which  should  accompany  old  age, 

As  honor,  love,  obedience,  troops  of  friends. 

Lastly,  gentlemen,  as  we  began,  so  let  us 
close — in  friendship  and  fraternity.  Let  us  have 
in  the  grand  finale  some  thoughts  of  home.  Mr. 
Herndon  Morsell  will  pronounce  an  informal 
benediction  in  that  beautiful  lyric,  "The  Song 
That  Reached  My  Heart." 


87 


The  Song  That  Reached  My  Heart 

I  sat  midst  a  mighty  throng 

Within  a  palace  grand, 

In  a  city  far  beyond  the  sea, 

In  a  distant  foreign  land. 

I  listened  to  the  grandest  strain 

My  ear  had  ever  heard, 

Enraptured,  charmed,  amazed  I  was, 

My  inmost  soul  was  stirred. 

I  looked  on  the  singer  fair, 

My  heart  was  at  her  feet; 

She  sang  of  love,  the  old,  old  theme, 

In  accents  low  and  sweet. 

And  then  she  sang  a  song,  that  made  the  tear-drops  start; 

She  sang  a  song,  a  song  of  home, 

A  song  that  reached  my  heart. 

That  night  I  shall  never  forget, 

That  night  with  its  pleasure  and  pain, 

I  think  of  the  singer,  I  think  of  the  song, 

And  wish  I  could  live  it  again; 

In  fancy  again  I  recall 

The  scene  with  its  splendor  bright; 

The  mighty  throng,  the  palace  grand, 

Oh,  the  mem'ry  of  that  night, 

My  fancy  it  may  have  been, 

But  never  had  I  heard 

A  song  that  thrilled  me  o'er  like  this, 

Like  this  so  strangely  stirred. 

The  mem'ries  of  that  night  of  bliss  will  never  from  me  part, 

She  sang  a  song,  of  "Home,  sweet  home," 

The  song  that  reached  my  heart. 

Home,  Home,  Sweet,  sweet  home. 

She  sang  the  song  of  "Home,  sweet  home," 

The  song  that  reached  my  heart. 


88 


PARTICIPANTS 


This  valiant  host,  in  battles  fought 
Did  give  and  take  as  true  men  ought, 
But  now,  to  serve  more  worthy  ends, 
Do  greet  the  guest  and  eat  as  friends. 


Felix  Agnus. 
Theron  Akin. 
J.   Frank  Aldrich. 
J.  B.  Aleshire. 
Joshua  W.  Alexander. 
James  Allen. 
Alfred  G.  Allen. 
Paul  Anderson. 
Joseph  P.  Annin. 

D.  R.  Anthony,  Jr. 

E.  A.  Armstrong. 
William  A.  Ashbrook. 
R.  W.  Austin. 

R.  O.  Bailey. 
Joseph  W.  Bailey. 
Andrew  J.  Barchfeld. 
N.  P.  Barnes. 
William  J.  Barnes,  Jr. 
Samuel   S.   Barney. 
Henry  A.  Barnhart. 
Richard  Bartholdt 
Geo.  A.  Bartlett. 
Frank  H.  Barto. 
Arthur  L.  Bates. 
Jack  Beall. 
Dimner  Beeber. 


Perry  Belmont 
Wm.  S.  Bennet. 
Ira  E.   Bennett. 
Charles  G.  Bennett. 
Clifford  K.  Berryman. 
E.  P.  Bertholf. 
William  G.  Biederman. 
Sidney  Bieber. 
Frank  O.  Briggs. 
Rogers  Birnie. 
George  T.  Bishop. 
Frank  S.  Black. 
H.  W.  Blanchard. 
E.  P.  Blanchard. 
Rupert  Blue. 
M.  R.  Blumenberg. 
Samuel  G.  Blythe. 
Jno.  W.  Boehne. 
Scott  C.  Bone. 
J.  Fenton  Booth. 
Henry  S.  Boutell. 
Thos.  W.  Bradley. 
C.  C.  Brainerd. 
Frank  B.  Brandegee. 
Thos.   W.   Brahany. 
Wm.  G.  Brantley. 


89 


PARTICIPANTS-Continued 


Jos.  A.  Breckons. 
Robert  F.  Broussard. 
Chapin  Brown. 
R.  B.  Brown. 
Thomas  C.  L.  Brown. 
Wm.  J.   Browning. 
Frank  Buchanan. 
R.  J.  Bulkley. 
George  F.  Burgess. 
Chas.  H.  Burke. 
Theodore  E.  Burton. 
L.  W.  Busbey. 
Thomas  S.  Butler. 
John   Byers. 
James  F.  Byrnes. 
Joseph  W.  Byrns. 
Timothy  E.  Byrns. 
Geo.  Brown. 
R.  E.  Cabell. 
Wm.  M.  Calder. 
James  Callanan. 
Philip  P.  Campbell. 
Richard  Campion. 
James  C.  Cantrill. 
Chas.  D.  Carter. 
A.  E.  Chaffee. 
E.  J.  Chamberlain. 
Fred  T.  Chandler. 
P.  T.  Chapman. 
J.  Charles. 
Wm.  E.  Chilton. 
H.  E.  Chubbuck. 
E.  B.  Clark. 
Horace  F.  Clark. 


Clarence  D.  Clark. 
Champ  Clark. 
Frank  Clark. 
Henry  D.  Clayton. 
J.  C.  Clements. 
Edwin  H.  Clift. 
Bourke  Cockran. 
Wm.  B.  Cockran. 
Frank  T.  Codrington. 
Frank  Cole. 
Ralph  D.  Cole. 
Frank  W.  Collier. 
Frank  W.  Connor. 
L.  A.  Coolidge. 

D.  W.  Cooper. 
Ira  C.  Copley. 

E.  Livingston  Cornelius. 
John  Corrigan,  Jr. 

J.  A.  Corwin. 
J.  C.  Courts. 
Thos.  S.  Crago. 
Charles   F.   Craig. 
Geo.  A.  Craig. 
W.  Murray  Crane 
Ben  Cravens. 
Frank  B.  Crosthwaite. 
E.  H.  Crowder. 
William  Crozier. 
Edgar   D.   Crumpacker. 
Shelby  M.  Cullom. 
Francis  Curtis. 
Chas.  E.  Curtiss. 
A.  W.  Chaffee. 
Austin  Cunningham. 


90 


PARTICIPANTS— Continued 


John  Dalzell. 
Henry  G.  Danforth. 
James  H.  Davidson. 
D.  G.  Davis. 
John  W.  Davis. 
Robert  H.  Davis. 
Henry  S.  De  Forest. 
Elmer  Dell. 
Matthew  R.  Denver. 
H.  E.  Devendorf. 
Marion  De  Vries. 
Chas.  Dick. 
Clement  C.  Dickinson. 
L.  Dixon. 
D.  Webster  Dixon. 
Francis  H.   Dodds. 
Samuel  B.  Donnelly. 
C.  B.  Dorchester. 
Chas.  W.  Dorr. 
James  A.  Dougherty. 
Win.  H.  Draper. 
Daniel  A.  Driscoll. 
H.  Garland  Dupre. 
Thos.  B.  Dunn. 
Cyrus   Durey. 
John  W.  Dwight 
Albert  Eisner. 
Fred  A.  Emery. 
James  A.  Emery. 
A.  A.  Erly. 
Albert  Estopinal. 
Lynden  Evans. 
Victor  J.  Evans. 
George  W.  Fairchild. 


G.  W.  Paris. 
Maurice  L.  Farrell. 
A.  F.  Fechteler. 
J.   Feldenheimer. 
Geo.   Findlay. 
David  E.  Finley. 
Adolph  Fishel. 
S.  Fisher. 
John  J.  Fitzgerald. 
John  C.  Floyd. 
Benj.  K.  Focht. 
Joseph  W.  Fordney. 
Chas.  V.  Fornes. 
George  E.  Foss. 
Martin  D.  Foster. 
Rudolph  Forster. 
D.  R.  Francis. 
Gerald  Frank. 
Nathan  Frank. 
Henry  Freeman. 
Chas.  E.  Fuller. 
Robert  J.  Gamble. 
Augustus  P.  Gardner. 
John  J.  Gardner. 
John  N.  Garner. 
Finis  J.  Garrett. 
Louis  Garthe. 
R.  M.  Gates. 
John  P.  Gavit. 
James  L.  Gerry. 
W.  C.  Gearing. 
Frank  S.  Gierne 
Frank  H.  Ginn. 
Robert  M.  Ginter. 


91 


PARTICIPANTS-Continued 


Earl   Godwin. 
Henry  M.  Goldfogle. 
James  W.  Good. 
James  M.  Graham. 
C.  P.  Grandfield. 
Joel  Grayson. 
Wm.  S.  Greene. 
Wm.  W.  Griest. 
C.  H.  Grosvenor. 
Aaron  Grove. 
Frank  E.  Guernsey. 
Simon  Guggenheim. 
Harry  Hall. 
J.  W.  Halsey. 
C.  A.  Hamilton. 
Winfield   S.   Hammond. 
Henry  C.  Hansbrough. 
W.  C.  Hanson. 
Rufus  Hardy. 
J.  F.  Harper. 
Norman  W.  Harris. 
A.  C.  Hart. 
Jesse  L.  Hartman. 
Willis  C.  Hawley. 
Carl  Hayden. 
Wm.  H.  Heald. 
J.  Thomas  Heflin. 
R.  D.  Heinl. 
J.  A.  Hemenway. 
J.  B.  Henderson,  Jr. 
Robert  Henderson. 
H.  O.  Heistand. 
W.  P.  Hepburn. 
Washington  Herald. 


Hillary  A.   Herbert. 
I.  N.  Hibbard. 
Wm.  B.  Hibbs 
Edwin  W.  Higgins. 
Ebenezer  J.  Hill. 
Chas.  D.  Hilles. 
Asher  C.  Hinds. 
Frank  T.  Hines. 
Frank  S.  Hinrichs. 
Frank  H.  Hitchcock. 
W.  B.  Hoggatt. 
Jno.   E.   Hollingsworth. 
Wm.  C.  Houston 
Joseph  Howell. 
Cye  Howenstine. 
James  A.  Hughes. 
Wm.  E.  Humphrey. 
Benjamin  G.Humphreys. 
Allan  A.  Irvine. 
Harold  L.  Jackson. 
Albert   Jaegers. 
Ollie  M.  James. 
C.  G.  Jewell. 
E.  B.  Johns. 
Chas.  F.  Johnson. 
H.  L.  E.  Johnson 
Philander  Johnson. 
Dwight  V.  Jones. 
Herbert  L.  Jones. 
Wesley  L.  Jones. 
Eldridge  E.  Jordan. 
Chas.  F.  Joy. 
Julius  Kahn. 
J.  Harry  Kaiser. 


92 


PARTICIPANTS-Conlinued 


J.  K.  Kalanianaole. 
T.  P.  Kane. 
Gus  J.  Karger. 
Rudolph   Kauffmann. 
R.  M.  Kauffmann,  Jr. 
L.  M.  Kelley. 
H.  F.  Kendall. 
N.  E.  Kendall. 
Chas.  A  Kennedy 
Bert  W.  Kennedy. 
James  Kennedy. 
Wm.  Kent. 
F.  J.  Kernan. 
H.  W.  Ketron. 
Chas.  P.  Keyser. 
S.  J.  Kimball. 
Eugene  F.  Kinkead 
E.  H.  Kinkead 
Moses  P.  Kinkaid. 
John  Kirby. 
A.  J.  Kleberg. 
Gardner  Kline. 
Charles  L.  Knapp. 
Joseph  R.  Knowland. 
Thos.  F.  Konop. 
Arthur  W.  Kopp. 
Emil  Kuhn. 
Daniel  F.  Lafean 
Wm.  L.  La  Follette 
John  Lamb. 
Jonathan  N.  Langham. 
George  B.  Laughlin. 
George  P.  Lawrence. 
Gordon  Lee. 


Francis  L.   Leland. 
A.  J.  Lester. 
Montague  Lessler. 
Asbury  F.  Lever. 
Jefferson  M.  Levy. 
J.   Charles  Linthicum. 
Henry  F.  Lippitt. 
Lucius  N.  Littauer. 
Thos.  P.  Littlepage. 
James  T.  Lloyd. 
Thomas  F.  Logan. 
Nicholas  Longworth. 
Frank  B.  Lord. 
Wm.   Lorimer. 
George  A.  Loud. 
James  McAndrews. 
Samuel  W.  McCall. 
George   D.   McCreary. 
Porter  J.  McCumber. 
James  T.  McDermott. 
D.  J.   McGillicuddy. 
Charles  A.  MacGrath. 
Bird  S.  McGuire. 
Ormsby  McHarg. 
Frank  Mclntyre. 
Henry  H.  McKee. 
Joseph  McKenna. 
John  C.  McKenzie. 
James   McKinney. 
Duncan  E.   McKinlay. 
Wm.    B.    McKinley. 
James    McLaughlin. 
James  C.  McLaughlin. 
J.  F.  McMurray. 


93 


PARTICIPANTS-Continued 


C.  R.  Macauley. 
Martin   B.   Madden. 
John  H.  Magruder. 
Wm.  A.  Major. 
James  R.  Mann. 
G.  E.  Martin. 
Eben  W.  Martin. 
James  E.  Martine. 
John  A.  Martin. 
Thos.  O.  Marvin. 
W.  E.  Mason. 
S.  A.  Megearth. 
E.  A.  Merritt,  Jr. 
N.  O.  Messenger. 
George  von  L.  Meyer. 
Louis  T.  Michener. 
Hugh  S.  Miller. 
A.  L.  Mills. 
Frank  W.  Mondell. 
Jno.  E.  Monk. 
J.  Hampton  Moore. 
Henry  H.  Moran. 
Dick  T.  Morgan. 
Martin  A.  Morrison. 
Herndon  Morsell. 
Alexander  Mosher. 
Luther  W.  Mott. 
R.  F.  Moyer. 
C.  B.  Muller. 
David  W.  Mulvane. 
Frank  A.  Munsey. 
J.  W.  Murphy 
Wm.  F.  Murray. 
Charles  Nagel. 


J.  C.  Needham. 
Knute   Nelson. 
John  H.  Nolan. 
James  E.  Normyle. 
Dan  C.  Nugent. 
Frank  M.  Nye. 
George  H.  O'Connor. 
James  A.  O'Gorman. 
J.  Van  Vechten  Olcott. 
George  T.  Oliver. 
Marlin  E.  Olmsted 
George   F.   O'Shaunessy. 
Richard  V.  Oulahan. 
Henry  T.  Oxnard. 
James  F.  Oyster. 
Carroll  S.  Page. 
Robert  N.  Page. 
Wm.  Tyler  Page. 
Lemuel  P.  Padgett. 
Truman  G.   Palmer. 
Myron   M.  Parker. 
R.  Wayne  Parker. 
Charles  E.   Patton. 
Sereno  E.  Payne. 
Thomas  H.  Paynter. 
Lafe  Pence. 
Boies  Penrose. 
Irvin  S.  Pepper. 
LeRoy  Percy. 
Andrew  J.  Peters. 
Horace   Pettit. 
Herman  Phillips. 
Marshall  W.  Pickering. 
Charles  E.  Pickett. 


94 


PARTICIPANTS-Continued 


-ft 


T.  M.  Pierce. 
Mahlon  Pitney. 
Frank  Plumley. 
Atlee  Pomerene. 
Stephen  G.  Porter. 
Washington  Post. 
Henry  A.  Powell. 
Caleb  Powers. 
Charles  N.  Pray. 
W.  C.  Prentis. 
William  E.  Prentiss 
The  President. 
James  D.  Preston. 
George  W.  Prince. 
Arsene  P.  Pujo. 
M.  L.  Quezon. 
Henry  T.  Rainey. 
Wallace  Radcliffe. 
John  E.  Raker. 
Joseph  E.  Ralph. 
George  C.  Rankin. 
Joseph  E.  Ransdell. 
George  W.  Ray. 
S.  B.  Raymond. 
A.  C.  Rearick. 
W.  P.  Reeds. 
Thomas  L.  Reilly. 
John  E.  Reyburn. 
William  S.  Reyburn. 
J.   B.  Reynolds. 
S.  S.  Richardson. 
C.  G.  Richardson. 
Oscar  J.  Ricketts. 
Herman   Ridder. 


Charles  Rittenhouse. 
William  A.  Rittenhouse. 
E.  G.  Riggs. 
B.  H.  Roberts. 
Ernest  W.  Roberts. 
George  E.  Roberts. 
W.  F.  Roberts. 
William  A.  Rodenberg. 
Joseph  G.  Rogers. 
Elihu  Root. 
Thomas  L.  Rubey. 
William  W.  Rucker. 
Atterson  W.  Rucker. 
Cuno  H.  Rudolph. 
W.  C.  Ruffin. 
Joseph  J.  Russell. 
Robt.  L.  Russell. 
William  T.  Russell. 
John  P.  Ryan. 
Adolph  J.  Sabath. 
Chas.  H.  Sanders. 
E.  R.  Sartwell. 
Gus.  A.  Schuldt. 
Oswald  F.  Schuette. 
N.  B.  Scott. 
George  C.  Scott. 
Thos.  J.  Scully. 
W.  D.  Searle. 
William  G.  Sharp. 
John  A.  Sleicher. 
Swagar  Sherley. 
Isaac  R.  Sherwood 
John  S.  Shriver. 
James  S.  Simmons. 


95 


PARTICIPANTS-Continued 


Henry  K.  Simpson. 
A.  L.  Sinclair. 
Joseph   Sinnott. 
Thomas  U.  Sisson. 
James  L.  Slayden. 
C.  Bascom  Slemp. 
Charles  H.  Sloan. 
William  Sloane. 
Fred  H.  Smith 
Frank  Smith. 
Hal  H.  Smith. 
J.  M.  C.  Smith. 
Marcus  A.  Smith. 
M.  P.  Smith. 
Middleton  Smith. 
Ralph  Smith. 
W.  A.  Smith. 
Edgar  C.  Snyder. 
J.  C.  South. 
Stephen   M.    Sparkman. 
Peter  M.  Speer. 
William  J.  Spencer. 
Maurice   Splain. 
Washington  Star. 
F.  ].  Starek. 
Fred  W.  Steckman. 
George  W.  Steele. 
Halvor  Steenerson. 
Edw.  J.   Stellwagen. 
Dan  V.   Stephens, 
John  H.  Stephens. 
Isaac  Stephenson. 
John  A.  Sterling. 
Frederick  C.  Stevens. 


M.  H.  Stevens 
John  K.  Stewart. 
I.  C.  Stockton 
Alfred  J.  Stofer. 
Frank  S.  Streeter. 
Jas.  F.  Stutesman. 
John  J.  Sullivan. 
Jesse  L.  Suter. 
John  T.  Suter. 
Robert  M.  Switzer. 
J.  Fred  C.  Talbott. 
Charles  A.  Talcott. 
James  A.   Tawney. 
George  W.  Taylor. 
Edward  L.  Taylor,  Jr. 
H.  W.  Taylor. 
J.  H.  Tenant. 
Napoleon  B.Thistlewood. 
Alfred  P.  Thorn. 
W.  A.  Thomas. 
Carmi  Thompson. 
James  R.  Thornton. 
William  T.  Tilden. 
Theo.  H.  Tiller. 
Washington  Times. 
Jackson  Tinker. 
Horace  M.  Towner. 
Robert  J.  Tracewell. 
South   Trimble. 
Chas.  E.  Townsend. 
Wm.  E.  Tuttle,  Jr. 
P.  H.  Uberoth. 
Edwin  S.  Underbill. 
Oscar  W.  Underwood. 


96 


PARTICIPANTS— Continued 


-tt 


H.  C  Van  Voorhis. 
Wm.  S.  Vare. 
Leroy  T.  Vernon. 
E.  B.  Vreeland. 
Wilbur  F.  Wakeman. 
Charles  D.  Walcott. 
Stanton  Warburton. 
Harry  T.  Warnick. 
Francis  E.  Warren. 
John  T.  Watkins. 
Clarence  W.  Watson. 
John  W.  Weeks. 
A.  B.  Welton. 
Henry  L.  West. 
George  P.  Wetmore. 
Adolph  Weyl. 
John  J.  Whitacre. 
Edward  D.  White. 
George  White. 


James  Wickersham. 
George  W.  Wickersham. 
T.  A.  Wickersham. 
John  Sharp  Williams. 
Frank  B.  Willis. 
Wm.  W.  Wilson. 
James  Wilson. 
Blanton  Win  ship. 
S.  W.  Winslow. 
S.  A.  Witherspoon. 
Simon  Wolf. 
I.  P.  Wood. 
Ira  W.  Wood. 
Elliott  Woods. 
Wm.  Wooley. 
Henry  Xander. 
H.  Olin  Young. 
James  R.  Young. 
C.  B.  Zabriskie. 


THE  COMMITTEE 


Chairman,  Benjamin  G.  Humphreys. 
Vice-Chairman,  J.  Hampton  Moore. 

Secretary,  Ira  C.  Copley. 
Treasurer,  Eugene  F.  Kinkead. 

John  Sharp  Williams.  Richard   Bartholdt. 

Robert  F.  Broussard.  Thomas  W.  Bradley. 

Wm.  G.  Brantley.  D.  R.  Anthony,  Jr. 

James  M.  Graham.  Frank  W.  Mondell. 

Joseph  W.  Fordney.  Willis  C.  Hawley. 

Chas.  A.  Korbly.  Martin  B.  Madden. 

Andrew  J.   Peters.  Edward  J.  Taylor,  Jr. 

John  J.  Fitzgerald.  John  T.  Suter. 

George  W.  Taylor.  Rudolph  Kauffmann. 


COMMENTS  OF  THE  PRESS 


WASHINGTON  POST,  FEB.  16,  1913 

NCLE  JOE"  CANNON,  veteran  of  the 
Republican  party,  and  hero  of  a  hundred 
fights,  whose  influence  on  the  legisla- 
tion of  his  country  has  been  felt  for  upward  of 
40  years  of  public  life,  was  the  guest  of  honor  last 
night  at  the  most  remarkable  banquet  ever  given 
in  the  National  Capital.  There  were  present  Re- 
publicans, Democrats,  Progressives,  Mugwumps, 
and  Socialists.  Every  man  of  them  sang  the 
praises  of  this  old-time  leader,  who,  on  March  4 
next,  will  retire  to  his  home  in  Danville,  111.,  leav- 
ing behind  a  public  record  that  few,  if  any,  have 
equaled,  and  that  has  been  surpassed  by  none  in 
the  legislative  halls  of  Congress. 

The  President  of  the  United  States,  the  Chief 
Justice  and  associate  justices  of  the  Supreme 
Court,  members  of  the  cabinet,  senators,  and 
representatives,  distinguished  citizens  of  Wash- 
ington, and  many  of  the  correspondents  who  do 
their  work  in  the  big  building  on  the  hill  made 


99 


up  the  hosts  of  this  honored  guest.  There  sat 
down  at  the  table  560  hosts,  and  for  five  hours 
the  fame  of  "Uncle  Joe"  was  spoken  and  sung. 

The  keynote  of  almost  every  speech  made  was 
that  Joseph  G.  Cannon  was  merely  entering 
upon  a  vacation ;  that  he  was  "coming  back"  and 
that  as  a  man  and  a  statesman  he  must  be  reck- 
oned with  in  the  future. 

President  Taft  characterized  him  as  a  great 
American  who,  by  many  decades  of  disinterested 
patriotic  service,  had  earned  the  verdict  of  "well 
done"  from  his  countrymen.  Senator  Root 
eulogized  Uncle  Joe  as  the  man  who  was  so  full 
of  the  courage  of  his  convictions  that  he  dared 
defy  powerful  influences  because  he  believed  the 
cause  unjust,  and  thereby  made  the  Presidency 
impossible  for  him. 

The  tribute  of  last  night,  joined  in  so  heartily 
by  men  of  all  political  creeds,  the  New  York  sen- 
ator said,  showed  that  this  country  could  not  be 
Mexicanized,  because  beneath  the  stress  and 
storm  of  politics  there  existed,  and  always  would 
exist,  the  American  spirit  of  brotherhood  toward 
all  Americans.  The  speech  of  Senator  Root 
dealt  with  the  life  of  Mr.  Cannon  more  in  the 
abstract  than  any  other  made,  and  drew  lessons 
that  should  be  observed  by  all  young  men. 


100 


WASHINGTON  STAR 

rT  WAS  "Dear  Old  Uncle  Joe"  last  night 
when  more  than  half  a  thousand  of  the 
friends  of  Representative  Joseph  Gurney 
Cannon  paid  him  the  testimonial  of  their  pres- 
ence at  a  farewell  dinner  given  in  the  Raleigh 
Hotel.  It  was  given  to  mark  Uncle  Joe's  retire- 
ment from  public  life,  after  having  been  in  the 
forefront  of  national  affairs  for  forty  years,  thirty- 
eight  of  which  he  has  been  a  member  of  the 
House  of  Representatives. 

It  was  "Dear  Old  Uncle  Joe"  with  every  man 
present,  and  when  it  is  said  that  Republicans 
and  Democrats  and  Progressives  and  stand- 
patters and  all  the  other  brands  mingled  one 
with  another  and  cheered  till  they  were  hoarse 
when  Uncle  Joe  was  toasted,  some  idea  of  the 
sentiment  at  the  dinner  can  be  gleaned.  The 
politics  of  the  nation  lay  down  and  laughed  until 
its  side  ached  at  the  way  the  biggest  politicians 
in  the  land  poked  fun  at  one  another  and  the 
leaders  of  national  life  leaned  toward  the  speak- 
ers with  attentive  ears  when  Uncle  Joe  was 
being  lauded  and  praised  by  those  who  have 
known  him  so  long. 

It  was  "Dear  Old  Uncle  Joe"  with  the  Presi- 
dent of  the  United  States,  by  members  of  his 
cabinet,  by  Chief  Justice  White  and  associate 
justices  of  the  Supreme  Court,  by  senators  and 

101 


representatives  in  Congress,  by  men  in  private 
life  and  by  men  whose  names  have  previously 
been  emblazoned  upon  the  scrolls  of  national 
fame.  They  all  vied  with  one  another  in  doing 
honor  to  Mr.  Cannon,  and  a  remarkable  instance 
was  the  fact  that  Progressives  who  entered  Con- 
gress upon  the  issue  of  opposition  to  "Cannon- 
ism,"  were  there  in  full  force  and  cheered  as 
loudly  as  the  pattest  standpatter  when  it  came 
turn  to  give  vocal  demonstrations  in  honor  of 
the  former  Speaker.  The  occasion  was  devoid 
of  partisanship.  It  was  a  man's  night. 

There  wasn't  any  of  the  sob  element  in  the 
farewell,  either.  It  may  be  there  was  some  of  it 
in  the  hearts  of  the  close  friends  of  Uncle  Joe, 
but  the  program  for  the  entertainment  of  the 
evening  had  been  arranged  so  as  to  studiously 
avoid  anything  of  the  sort.  There  were 
speeches,  of  course,  grave  and  gay,  and  a  hand 
organ,  pressed  into  service  by  a  jovial  newspaper 
man  in  charge  of  one  of  the  "skits"  of  the  dinner, 
and  half  a  dozen  correspondents  from  the  Capi- 
tol press  gallery,  contributed  a  fifteen-minute 
"sketch,"  showing  the  inside  talk  that  goes  on 
in  the  press  gallery  while  Congress  is  in  session. 

Representative  Benjamin  G.  Humphreys,  of 
Mississippi,  a  Democrat,  was  chairman  of  the 
Congressional  Committee  in  charge  of  arrange- 
ments. He  presided,  with  Representative  J. 
Hampton  Moore,  of  Pennsylvania,  acting  as 

102 


toastmaster.  Thus  Republican  and  southern 
Democrat  steered  the  dinner  through  the  even- 
ing. "Hampy"  Moore  gave  notice  that  the  five- 
minute  rule  would  prevail,  and  this  was  enforced 
as  vigorously  as  it  ever  was  while  Mr.  Cannon 
was  in  the  Speaker's  chair. 

President  Taft  arrived  late,  out  of  deference 
to  Mr.  Cannon,  etiquette  requiring  that  when  he 
is  present  he  shall  occupy  the  seat  of  honor. 
But  once  in  the  hall,  the  President  entered  into 
the  spirit  of  the  occasion  and  vied  with  those  as- 
sembled to  impress  upon  Mr.  Cannon  the  love  in 
which  he  is  held. 


WASHINGTON  HERALD 

|  HEY  buried  Uncle  Joe  Cannon  last  night 
under  an  avalanche  of  praise,  congratu- 
lations, and  farewell  blessings. 
The  dinner  in  his  honor  at  the  Raleigh  Hotel 
was  the  greatest  political  function  of  the  winter 
season.  From  far  and  near  men  who  had  served 
under  Uncle  Joe,  who  had  fought  with  him  and 
for  him,  and  around  him,  and  against  him,  came 
to  the  National  Capital  to  do  honor  to  the  man 
who  has  been  the  legislative  storm  center  of  the 
Republican  party  through  all  of  one  and  through 
part  of  two  generations. 

103 


The  President  of  the  United  States  voiced  the 
sentiment  of  congratulation,  good  will  and  god- 
speed. 

The  Chief  Justice  of  the  United  States  broke 
an  age-old  precedent  and  spoke  at  a  political 
function. 

Members  of  the  Senate,  of  the  Cabinet,  of  the 
Diplomatic  Corps,  and  of  the  army  and  the  navy 
were  numbered  among  the  550  diners  who  filled 
every  seat  in  the  vast  dining  hall,  and  who  later 
gathered  closer  and  closer  around  the  wiry  form 
of  the  picturesque  statesman. 

Partisan  lines  were  obliterated.  The  presid- 
ing officer  was  a  Democrat,  Representative  Ben- 
jamin G.  Humphreys,  of  Mississippi.  The  toast- 
master  was  Representative  J.  Hampton  Moore, 
of  Pennsylvania,  a  Republican  and  a  member  of 
the  old  guard. 

The  dinner  began  at  7.30  o'clock,  and  lasted 
till  the  witching  time  surrounding  midnight. 
For  a  farewell  dinner  it  was  without  the  first 
note  of  sadness,  and  the  gayest  man  in  all  the 
hall  was  Joseph  Gurney  Cannon,  of  Danville, 
111.,  soon  to  be  a  private  citizen  for  at  least  two 
years. 

One  of  Uncle  Joe's  favorite  habits,  the  applica- 
tion of  the  five-minute  rule  on  oratory,  was  the 
rule  of  the  night.  It  was  as  rigidly  enforced  as 
ever  Mr.  Cannon  in  the  heyday  of  his  power  had 
ever  enforced  it. 


104 


Bust  of  Hon.  Joseph  G.  Cannon 

From  the  Congressional  Record 
Friday,  Feb.  28,  1913 

R.  MANN.     Mr.  Speaker,  I  ask  unani- 
mous consent  for  the  present  consid- 
eration of  the  resolution  which  I  send 
to  the  Clerk's  desk  and  ask  to  have  read. 

The  Clerk  read  as  follows : 

Whereas  friends  both  in  and  out  of  Congress 
have  presented  to  the  Hon.  Joseph  G.  Cannon 
a  marble  bust  of  himself,  with  the  expressed 
hope  that  it  be  placed  in  the  House  Office 
Building;  and 
Whereas  Mr.  Cannon  has  offered  to  present  such 

bust  to  the  House  of  Representatives ;  and 
Whereas  Mr.  Cannon  has  been  for  many  years  an 
honored  Member  of  the  House  of  Representa- 
tives and  was  for  eight  years  the  Speaker  and 
originated  the  proposition  for  the  House  Office 
Building:   Now  therefore  be  it 
Resolved  by  the  House  of  Representatives, 
That  the  House  Office  Building  Commission  is 
hereby  authorized  to  accept  on  behalf  of  the 
House  of  Representatives  the  marble  bust  of 
Hon.  Joseph  G.  Cannon  and  place  the  same  in  a 
proper  position  in  the  House  Office  Building, 

105 


and  that  the  thanks  of  the  House  of  Representa- 
tives be,  and  the  same  are  hereby,  tendered  to 
Mr.  Cannon  for  the  gift  of  the  said  bust. 

The  Speaker.  Is  there  objection  to  the  present 
consideration  of  the  revolution? 

There  was  no  objection. 

The  Speaker.  The  question  is  on  agreeing  to 
the  resolution. 

The  resolution  was  agreed  to. 


UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS-URBANA 

8.C226  C002 

A  RECORD  OF  THE  TESTIMONIAL  DINNER  TO  HO 


.30112  025405074 


